You Don't Miss It Till It's Gone
by numina
Summary: [END] And so Fate smiled ruefully, and let the curtains fall. [KAIORA NAMIXAS LARXEL] R&R.
1. Promise Me

**A/N**: Yayness! My first Kingdom Hearts fic! I really intended to make a Roxaminé, but ideas just kept on coming... Don't worry though, the companion to this fic's from Roxas and Naminé's point of view. This happens after KHII, so there are major spoilers ahead. Okay, okay, just go read!

**A/N2**: Just added some things to help the story's flow... okay also changed some... oh what the heck... just please please pretty please read it again... thanks so much... sorry for the late update...

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer**: So sorry to disappoint you but sadly, I don't own Kingdom Hearts or the Energizer Bunny.

**I: _Pro_**_mise** Me**_

"Walking this road,

Without you,

To remake forgotten promises and meet you at road's end."

"Faded Memories,

Reconstucted Memories,

A dream - a dream of you,

In a world without you."

"A scattered dream that's like a far-off memory.

A far-off memory that's like a scattered dream.

I want to line the pieces up --

yours and mine."

----------

A girl on a beach, a star in hand. Three friends, talking about new worlds. Two fade away into the wind, and leave one to jump into his nightmare. A princess, an outstretched hand, a clash. A freed heart.

The door to Kingdom Hearts.

The stars return. A figure disappears in light. Two girls from the opposite ends of memory whisper the same words in unison. A spiral staircase. Loyal members of the royal court. Running up, down, backwards. Two keyblade masters charge at different points in time in the same white room.

A door opens. The chain of memories breaks. A Keyblade Master sleeps, dreaming of his friends. A Wielder falls through the ruins of his other's memory. He holds half of his other within him.

The story of a Keyblade.

"Wha..?" Sora's eyelids shot open. Sunshine filtered through the windowpanes, making his vividly blue eyes burn with light. Morning already, but it felt like he'd fallen asleep only minutes ago. Dreams as vivid as _that _was a common occurence, the fact that he had someone else talking in his own head and filling his own dreams with _his_ memories didn't help very much.

-_That wasn't mine_- Roxas, which Sora had dubbed His Other Side (The Voice Within, he decided, was far too motivational-ish, His Inner Voice more so, and calling him his Nobody would probably tick him off), protested, sounding slightly hurt. -_It's not my fault that your head's all messed up and that you don't remember anything after reaching The Crossroads_.-

"Okay _already_ Roxas, don't annoy me this early in the morning," Sora sat up and yawned. His Other Side fled, muttering, to some unknown deep, dark recess in his head. True, having Roxas in his head was fun at first, but pretty soon His Other Side (He always thought of it in capital letters, Roxas was a bit touchy about that) got restless and started to haunt his dreams. He much preferred his own pleasant (albeit Kairi-filled) dreams to His Other Side's angst- riddled ones. Sometimes having Roxas in his head just drove him _crazy_.

A loud bump and the muffled scream of a dying Heartless on the other side of his door told him that Riku was already awake. Sure enough he heard the boy pound on his door.

"Sora! Are you up already?" Riku yelled. "Get up or we'll never get to Kairi!"

"Coming," Sora sighed as he pawed around his things looking for his black jacket (who cares if he wore the same clothes _every_ day, Flora, Fauna and Merryweather made sure they were always fresh, pressed and smelled of citrus-scented fabric conditioner every time he took them off). With Roxas muttering in his head he opened his door only to find a Neoshadow staring up at him with big yellow (Heartless never did achieve that puppy-eyes trick) eyes. Two swipes of his Keyblade and those eyes were no longer. He swiped his Keyblade a little more to get rid of the Icy Cubes scattered on the stairs and to grab hold of the banisters as he slipped on the little puddles they left behind.

"Couldn't you put that ward thing on the whole house?" Riku asked, peering at him through his silver hair."I mean, our rooms are protected, that all good and everything, but just getting downstairs is seriously a matter of life and death."

"Can't," he replied, helping himself to a badly toasted slice of bread. "Takes too much energy. I'm pretty sure you can bear it, but I can't. Sorry." Riku waved a hand in response.

It had been almost a month since they fell from the skies of Destiny Islands, fresh from their battle with Xemnas. The King, in recognition of what they have done, promised them knighthood, free access to His Majesty's gummi ship network, and two separate Royal Treasury Accounts, which contained enough for several generations to live comfortably on (the RTAs interested them the most, although Riku wouldn't admit it).

Fitting back in proved quite to be a challenge, however. He discovered that when Heartless had broken the Islands apart, quite a lot of people had turned into one of them. His parents, for one. Both were Heartless now, and Sora had no way of knowing whether he had already killed them or not with his Keyblade. The shock, pain and disbelief still hadn't worn off, sometimes he still cursed himself for being a Keyblade Master but not being able to protect them.

He had no choice but to look for another home. Kairi's had been a carefully considered option (she did say she and her grandmother was fine with him living with them) but he chose to move in with Riku, lest he be branded as a pervert. (Roxas just snickered in his head.) Riku was just fine with the idea, since he did live alone from time immemorial, with his mother long dead, his father long deserted, and his sister long missing.

The house was rapidly becoming a veritable spawning ground for Emblems, with both its occupants bearing the hearts of a Wielder. The ward against the creatures of darkness was powered by the Keyblades, which were, (as Riku theorized while they were both trapped inside a closet with a horde of Soldiers and Dusks pressing hard against the door) in turn, powered by the source of all darkness, Kingdom Hearts itself. Unfortunately, where Heartless gather, Nobodies usually go and find out exactly why. That made Riku's residence look like a training center, with the danger of getting your heart ripped out around every corner. That was the reason why scheduled sleepovers were immediately cancelled and rethought.

Explaining, however, was by far, the hardest part. You couldn't just walk up to your professor and say "Sorry, I'm two and a half years late, because I had to go and save the world". It took a very detailed explanation and a lot of repeating (no doubts whether the headmaster understood or even believed it or not) but the headmaster seemed to take this in stride (apparently the sight of their RTA's numbers on the tuition records made a huge impact) and placed them in levels suitable to their ages. Not surprisingly, both of them got advanced units in Sword Handling and Maneuvering. Sora was given a few credits to Battle Strategy. It seems that those times where he was stuck between giving a Hi-Potion to Donald and giving the finishing blow a very annoying Crimson Jazz did have their merits. Riku had advanced units in Philosophy and Logic, _how_ that happened, Sora didn't want to know.

And then there was the fitting in part. Some of the population didn't even believe what they had gone through. Some thought Riku was the only one fitting in the story. Some thought the Keyblade to be only a legend, and other worlds an even crazier story (those were the ones who turned up their noses at both Emblems and the Gummi Ship Network staring up at their faces). The excitement had already died down, yet Riku still had a band of girls following him everywhere and apparently leaving tiny little giftboxes full of chocolate and love notes on their doorstep. Sora had his own band of groupies, they thought him just adorable, with his "spiky creamy brown locks of lustrous hair and lips always set in an adorable pout", (Riku had one hell of a time reading that in front of Kairi) worthy of its very own fan club. Both groups, however, always broke into tiny little whispers everytime Kairi walked by in the company of two of the officially proclaimed hottest guys in the Academy. Although sometimes people gave him odd looks, and sometimes they just plain stared because Sora always _accidentally_ conversed aloud with His Other Side. Might as well have a "Psychotic Keyblade Master" sign posted over his head.

Today was the Sixth Day, free from the Academy's torture, also known as schoolwork. They were going to meet Kairi, his princess of heart (he liked to think of it that way) on the island off the Main where they always used to play on. They always went there whenever they had free time, exploring (the island had a very extensive forest), training, or just staring at the sky with Kairi's head on his shoulder and the sounds of Riku teaching Tidus and the others how to really duel properly.

"Sora? You talking again to Roxas?" Riku asked, eyebrow raised. (it was hard to see that with all that hair reaching down to his eyes) "I've got another training session, you have to explain to a certain sugar-high person (which meant either Tidus or Selphie) how to cast Magnega. And Kairi's waiting."

----------

Kairi Dalmasca was running, running hard and running _fast_. The moment she spotted the three circles of the King's seal on the letter she ran for it, not even waiting for the messenger to say "For the Key--" Who knows what would happen next.

"Sora! Riku!" She yelled as she approached the paopu tree where they always met. Both turned to look at her, Sora eyes wide, Riku with a smile of amusement (_amusement_! she was going to give him a piece of her mind later, savior of the world or not!). Skidding to a halt in front of the tree, she held out the bottle, panting. Sora's eyes went even wider, if possible, when he saw the seal, and he immediately popped the cork and slid the letter out. Kairi jumped over the tree to his side. It was just about their knighting

-_To the Keyblade Masters Sora Hikari and Riku Alcaia,_

_Greetings, my friends. As promised, you two will be knighted on the second Seventh Day of the Seventh Moon, which is about six months from now. Be prompt and prepare well. You may bring whoever you wish to witness this momentous event---_

The farther she read, the more the letter kind of rambled on. She supposed kings wrote that way, boring and predictable.

"I can see you're disappointed, Kai," Riku said after his eyes had traveled down the parchment. "Expecting another adventure?"

"Well, you could say yes," she sighed. "You boys had all the fun, you know, while I was stuck here, waiting. That is _so_ unfair," she pouted.

"Oh yeah, missing getting almost killed at least a dozen times and being swallowed by darkness, not to mention getting chased by thirteen psychopaths, is_ unfair_." He smirked at her, his eyes crinkling under his silver bangs.

She _hated_ pouting, but she was doing exactly that now. She turned to Sora for backup. His eyes were still trained on the letter, oblivious to both of them. "Huh? Sora?" He gave a start and grinned sheepishly. "I--I just can't believe we're gonna be knighted..." He pushed the letter back into the bottle. "All of _this_ is unbelievable---honestly, I really did only want to see other worlds, not to go and save them or something."

"Well, what's happened has already happened," Riku crossed his arms and leaned against the tree, a very familiar gesture. "We can't change the past. And it did bring us three closer, after all. Now we know that Sora here missed me so much that he actually dropped to his kness and cried, like a scene from a soap opera.Now _that_ is what I call unbelievable." (That earned him a punch on the shoulder, more like a slap from a rapidly turning red in the face Sora.)

Kairi giggled. "At least now, wherever one of us goes, the others follow, " She put out her hand. "That's a promise." Riku's pale (_that's _what you get from being in the dark so long) hand settled gently on top of hers, followed by Sora's. The two boys echoed her words, Riku's voice clear and strong, Sora's voice hard with determination.

She could've _sworn_ Sora's voice shook a tiny bit.

----------

Back and forth.

Back and forth.

Back and forth.

Sora stared at the bottle (it could've held a very good vintage champagne had it not been used as, well, as a messenger bottle; what was it with people and plain white envelopes?) and wondered _how_ a simple letter like that could reduce him to a shaking bundle of nerves. He started pacing again. -_If you don't stop pacing you'll wear the floor down- _Roxas whispered in his head.

He couldn't stop pacing. He paced when he had to think about something. _Hard._ It was a simple letter, true. But that was what Riku and Kairi saw. His eyelid twitched.

_---Sora, _

_I'm sorry to bother you on such short notice, but this concerns the Keyblade. You see, there are still worlds out there that still have their hearts unlocked. I've just recently discovered this, and if the hearts remain unsealed, Emblems will continue to try and take over the heart, and I cannot allow that. I cannot ask Riku to do this, because no matter what happens, darkness has already planted a seed in his heart that cannot be uprooted. Constant contact with such power from the heart of a world will turn him. Please, go and seal those worlds, or Kingdom Hearts will fall, and all existence with it. Your duty calls, Wielder. Go alone. Do not endanger a princess of heart. I _really_ am sorry._

_Mickey_

_And this message can only be seen by you. Others see something about you and Riku's knighting.---_

The note (it didn't even qualify as a letter) was hurriedly scribbled and was stained on one corner with something that looked horribly like blood. It looked like the King penned this down in the middle of a battle. A very _violent_ battle, at that.

He wanted to yell. He'd already done what he was meant to do--he had already sealed Kingdom Hearts (_hell, _he _was_ the key to Kingdom Hearts), he had already finished Organization XIII ( a bit silently, if you please, Roxas might go berserk), he had already saved the world twice over. He was already home. Why ruin that? He silently cursed the King and the Keyblade. _Why, of all the people roaming around in about a million different worlds out there, just minding their own business, why did the Keyblade have to choose _him

-_A strong heart bears many burdens- _Roxas muttered in his head. -_face it. You're going to seal Keyholes for the rest of your natural life. It kinda sucks to be you, Sora.-_

He didn't want to go. Who, in his place would want to? Duty called him to leave those he cared for the most. (His head _hurt_ from thinking.) He was finished with saving the world. He just wanted to lead a normal life. He, Riku, and Kairi had already found each other. Why ruin that? Why ruin a promise?

-_Wherever one of us goes, the others follow.-_

He glanced out his window. A supposed star vanished into the night right before his very eyes. Somewhere out there a reality was extinguished, its heart taken over by darkness.

It _does _suck to be Sora.

Roxas giggled.

----------

The sunset _was_ majestically beautiful. _She_ could tell, since she had almost her entire non-existent _life_ in a town perpetually caught between night and day (it gets kinda boring when you suddenly realize it's supposed to be high noon _and it's still twilight_ outside), inside a room in perpetual white, with only her colored pencils and nubby pastels to clash with _blinding_ white. She sometimes stood by the window, amidst the perpetually white curtains (washed, starched and pressed, mind you), watching the perpetual orange spread itself across the twilight sky.

_Now_ she was perpetually bound. Kairi was sitting on the docks again, her legs dangling over the crystal clear water, whiling away the time. _She _should be happy, they didn't fade back into darkness, her and the Nobody she was so much alike with. But living someone else's life? She sometimes found herself wishing for the darkness that never came. _She_ was still Naminé, whatever happened. Peace never came to someone born like _her_.

"Kai!" Riku came up on the dock, his shoes making the wood creak pleasantly. (See, Naminé could still _see, _could still _hear, _could still _sense, _but she couldn't do anything about it Naminé (_Kairi, Kairi!_) smiled at the platinum-haired Wielder. "Whoa, Riku, what's up with you?" she asked him.

Riku dropped down next to Kairi. "I just wanted to watch the sunset." Naminé could almost hear the unspoken words. _With you_.

_She'd_ messed up his head, more than once. _She'd_ created a false chain of memories and stuck them deep inside his replica's head, ( with a satisfied Vexen gleefully clapping his hands, remarking that his experiment had _finally_ come out perfectly) who promised to protect her, no matter what. _She_ saved him from drowning in light by taking on the form of the one person he would listen to. And here she was, _perpetually_ bound to the very same person. Who did he _see_? Kairi? or _her_ non-existent form?

----------

Sunsets here in Destiny Islands were _way_ too common, Kairi thought as she stared at the orange-tinged sky. (She could hear Naminé protest vehemently in her head.) You really _could_ get bored of paradise if you lived there long enough.

"Kai!"

Kairi looked over her shoulder as a familiar platinum-haired boy ran up the dock. She smiled. "Whoa, Riku, what's with you?"

He smiled back as he eased himself beside her, their legs dangling over the crystal that was ocean water. "I just wanted to watch the sunset," he answered, gazing at the golden ball that was the setting sun.

Kairi stole a glance at the person who sat next to her. Riku Alcaia. She knew he liked her. She could see it in the tiny things he did that no one else would notice---like that way he held himself around her ( and she had to admit---he was _hot_, no wonder the girl half of the school started hogging him), or the way he carefully averted his gaze when she met his. But he, being _Riku_, just let her and Sora be. She was grateful for that. They sat in silence. Not the kind of awkward silence between a crusher and a crushee (Kairi's brows drew together---was _crushee_ even a word?), but the comfortable silence between old friends.

"So... this is like the twentieth sunset in a row that you have watched."

"There are the little things in life that we shouldn't take for granted," he replied, still staring at the setting sun. "You know, it's pretty depressing to get stuck in a world where day is always night. I missed watching the sunset. Hey, I missed everything _normal_. The light still sometimes blinds me when it shouldn't be..." he sighed.

"Oh, Riku, don't worry about turning to darkness or anything of that stuff," she said in what she hoped was a comforting voice, and peered up at his aquamarine eyes (and ignoring that blush that was slowly spreading up his face; he was kinda cute that way). "You have that," she poked his chest where his heart should roughly be ", and that is something that'll never be overcome." (now he's blushing _really_ hard, if one of his fangirls saw him now she'd friggin' _faint_). "_And_ you have friends by your side. This time, you won't fight _anything_ alone, buddy. No leaving me out anymore," she said a little bit loudly.

"I know. It's just so hard to _forget_. And yeah, if we ever get chased by crazed guys with plans for universal domination, we'll let you know. _Then_ we'll see whose gonna be eating their words," he laughed. Kairi gave him a small punch in the arm (which would hardly leave a mark--the arm was _well_ built) and laughed with him.

"Oh yeah! Just because you guys got your own Keyblade doesn't prove---"

"And just because you're a princess of heart doesn't mean you can get away with _that_ pout."

"I am _not_ pouting! I'm way too old for that!"

Riku suddenly cocked his head, his eyes scanning the beach. "I smell sugar."

Kairi raised an eyebrow. Sure, Riku could pick up scents (_that_ certain talent came as a bit of a shock, they now had a _bloodhound_ for a friend, and that was just plain _weird_) of people, but sugar? _Then_ she heard a very familiar voice floating on the sea breeze. She giggled. Tidus (only one person can top off his hyperactiveness, and that was none other that Selphie) was yelling for Riku to teach him Magnega right _now_. (Sometimes she thought those two were just Energizer bunnies _pretending_ they were people.)

"I smell people _high_ on sugar," he grinned and stood up. "And now, princess, I go to escape a horrifying fate."

"_Don't_ call me prin---"

"Oh c'mon Kai, I know you like being a princess," he laughed softly, running a hand through his hair. "And just in time. Here comes your prince." Riku cocked his head in the direction of an approaching Sora. "See you later when I get away from sugar-boy there." He gave the other Wielder a smile (a smirk, more like, knowing Riku) as he ran away from the Energizer Bunny.

Kairi stared as Sora came up and sat next to her wordlessly. Sora, as far as she knew, wasn't the type to just sit there. He usually (well, always) made as much noise as possible to make his presence heard. Her heart suddenly beat, no, _galloped_ much faster.

She liked Sora. Oh, as in _liked_ him. Why would she throw herself in the middle of a corridor of darkness just to find him if she didn't?

"Kairi."

"Huh?" She stole a glance at him. She could see scarlet tinge his cheeks. _What the---_

"I want...I _have_ to tell you something. Before something happens and, well, you know---" he waved a dismissive hand around.

"You know you can tell me anything," she said quietly, the pounding in her chest, combined with Naminé's almost frantic giggling, was maddening. "What's up?" She could hear Sora sigh softly. _And since when did he ever do anything softly?_ She smiled at the thought.

"Kai."

This was getting irritating. "Wha--"

She only had a split second to react before Sora leaned in and kissed her, skin pressed against soft skin. Her eyes, widening in surprise, seeing herself reflected in his cerulean blues, closed and the kiss deepened.

He broke the kiss but still held her tight. "Did..did I say it right..?" he asked, grinning.(That grin often drove her _crazy_, the way it popped up in the most unusual of situations.)

"Mmm," She murmured. "Yeah...bit lacking though."

Now _his_ eyes widened as Kairi reached up and returned the gesture.

Hey, talk _is_ cheap.

----------

So sorry, the story got kinda mixed up in my head. So anyways please review my attempt at fanfiction... -sighs- I changed my mind, flames are accepted. There's always that one guy out there who'll hate me for writing this way. (or two. or three. or five thousand. Who cares?) Who knows? Maybe you're _that_ one guy.

Go on then, click that button and review. :D


	2. Fare You Well

**A/N:**Sorry for updating _this_ late, we went for a vacation where, sadly, there is no access to any computer of any kind gasps in horror . Don't worry I'll make it up to you guys. This lil' fanfic of mine might turn out to be _not _so little after all. Enjoy reading, buddies, and please review and let me know whether you like it or hate it to death.

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer: **Kingdom Hearts doesn't belong to me. Do you see my name in the credits? I think not.

**II: F**a**re **_You__W_e_**l**l_

----------

"You have reached the Gummi Ship Network communications division. If you know the local number, press it now. To reach the operator, press 0."

_beep._

"Good morning, this is operator Fallah, how may I be of assis--"

"Get me King Mickey."

"I'm sorry sir, but the Gummi Network does not accept calls for Disney Ca--"

"It _will_."

"But sir--"

"Get me the King _now!_"

"I'm sorry sir, but this line will be disconnected, we cannot tolerate such rude prank--"

"The hell with it! I AM NOT JOKING! Put the King on the line _now_ or I will personally make sure His Majesty knows that _you_ are the reason why the stars are going out one by fading one."

"I'm sorry sir, I don't understand what you are saying."

"Just patch me through, darn it! Patch Sora Hikari through! _Please_, lady."

"...!"

"Hello!"

"Hello!"

"_Hello!_"

"You have reached Disney Castle, overseer of the Worlds. To reach the Treasury, press 1. To reach the Court of Magic, press 2. To reach the Captain of the Guards, press 3. To reach His Majesty's Hall, press 4. To reach--"

_beep._

----------

"Hikari! Pay attention!"

Riku glanced at his best friend as he got reprimanded by their professor in Advanced Sword Handling and Maneuvering for the fourth time in the subject. "Hikari, I don't care if you're the youngest student in my class, it would do you _well_ to listen!" Some of the other students smirked at the professor's warning. True, Sora was the youngest in this class, by three years at most.

Sora looked up at the professor and shrugged. Apparently satisfied, he went back to teaching (_ -enemies always have a weak spot--it would be in your best interest to find--)_ and the Wielder resumed staring off into space, something that Riku knew Sora would never do (c'mon, he was always the ball of excited nerves). Advanced SHM _was_ kind of boring sometimes, but not this particular topic. _What's bothering him?_ Riku thought. What _could_ bother him, anyway? Both of them were home, Door to Darkness sealed, Organization XIII pushing up daisies...

He caught the boy staring out of the window, his eyes glazed over. Maybe he really _was_ a psychotic Keyblade Master. He smiled at the thought and returned his attention to the professor (-_of course, if you can't find the weak spot long enough before you die, there's-). _He never noticed that the glazed look in his friend's eyes held sadness. A lot of it.

(-_there's only one thing to do.-_)

(_-Run away.-_)

----------

Of course he couldn't run away. Not if you were stuck inside someone else's head, living someone else's life, when you had your _own_ memories of your _own _damn existence. He couldn't just get fed up and get up and leave his Other in the dust. Hearts never worked that way. (Roxas was again, fuming, nobody ever _told_ him that he would still be _Roxas_ after returning to Sora.) Sure, Kingdom Hearts was locked, Heartless gone (only their pathetic excuses for Emblems still crawled around), all _their _worlds back and connected, _that_ was fine and dandy, but what about them? The Organization got out lucky, _they_ just faded back where all dark, dank and gloomy things came from, but he, _he _was stuck with a life he doesn't even own! He wanted to scream, to yell to the world on about how _unfair_ it all was. Sadly, Sora still had control over him.

The bell had rung, and his Other was walking the halls of Destiny Islands Academy aimlessly, much like a zombie looking for sweet _sweet_ release from existence (which was what Roxas was _exactly_ wishing for now). Yeah, Sora was stuck in a rut. No, make that a canyon that opens all the way _down_, even past the Underdrome and Hades' Office for the Dead and the Dying. Basically, it came down to two things: love and duty. (He could hear Sora mentally agreeing with his Other Side.) And it was hard as hell making a choice. Why not just... run away?

"Sora! Hey, Sora!" a voice trilled behind Roxas (_No, no, NO, behind SORA! he snarled_).

Kairi. Sora's Princess of Heart. Not that Roxas cared, he didn't dabble in his Other's love life, he had his _own_ (he felt he had to emphasize that) to deal with.

He felt his Other's -- no, _their_ heart crack. -_Do not endanger a princess of heart.-_ If he had a body, he would've bit his lip. Sora stared into Kairi's purple eyes. Roxas stared into _Naminé's_ cerulean eyes, which were alight with happiness. How he wished he could just take _over_ and be somebody for once. Did Naminé feel the same about living a half-life? (How would he know then--he couldn't even just go and _ask_, he couldn't do something as trivial as that, and that irritated him even _more_)

"What's up with you?" she asked, concern painting her face (-_Naminé _loved_ painting- _Roxas sighed) as she glanced upwards at Sora. "You look... a little down. I mean, you're not your hyper, bouncy, kinda irritating but adorable self." (That was the first time she said that without blushing.) "Something wrong?"

"Just..." Sora's mind worked furiously, "...thinking about my parents." He grinned (it took a whole _lot_ of effort to do that, given the situation he's currently in) and took Kairi's hand in his own, squeezing tightly. "Sorry about spacing out." She squeezed back, her touch comforting yet saddening at the same time.

Roxas looked down at Sora's hand. He could almost _feel_ Naminé's hand. The crack was slowly spreading. Sooner or later, they would both have to let go. _Love or duty?_

"I'll walk you home." Naminé smiled at him. He was glad that both girls couldn't read what was running through their minds. _For the last time._

----------

Riku watched through a window as Sora and Kairi stopped at the latter's front door. As much as he would like to watch, he turned away and was confronted by a literal _swarm_ of Shadows, all bearing the Heartless seal (guaranteeing that _yes_, after milk and cookies they _will_ have a go at your heart, and _no_, they will _not_ do your book report, thank you very much). A single Firaga took care of that, though. He heard the door swing open as more of them Shadows popped up.

"Hey--"

"LIGHT!" Sora yelled, swinging his Keyblade up, blinding him temporarily. _The light still hurts, _he admitted to himself. As soon as regained his vision he noticed the swarm was nowhere to be seen. Riku stared at the other Wielder in disbelief. The ward was up and running _hard_ on Sora's energy. "What _did_ you just do?"

"I got tired of running into Heartless everytime I open a door, Riku. So I figured, what the hell, and---"

"You know, I got tired of that a _long_ time before you did." he cut him off, irritated at how long it took Sora to notice that it was a bit dangerous to have hungry, heart-ripping things everywhere you turn. Well, he was irritated at how..._shallow_ Sora was in general.

"Sorry," the other boy apologized quietly as he let his Keyblade dissipate into tiny dancing specks of light. Without another word he walked (shuffled, more like) past up the stairs, most probably, to his room.

What was up with _him_? Riku thought as he followed suit, reveling in the fact that no Icy Cube would ever try and kill him by making him slip on the steps. He pushed Sora's door slightly open as he passed, and caught him, his back turned, directing his Keyblade at a piece of parchment.

O_kay_, something's definitely up.

"And _what_ do you think you're doing?" he asked, clearing his throat. Sora jumped a little before letting his Keyblade go, the parchment fluttering to the floor.

"I can't do this," he said even more quietly than before (dangerously quiet, if you ask him), his back still resolutely turned.

"I don't think I've ever heard you use sentences only one at a time, Sora," Riku grinned, thinking the other Wielder was joking. He picked up the pale parchment, recognizing the King's seal on the back. "Oh c'mon Sora, you still hung up on the knighting thing?" He didn't think Sora would be _that_ shallow.

He sighed tiredly. "Riku, read the note again. I can't take it anymore."

"What? It's just the same---" he almost choked as he saw what the King had written. He trained his eyes on the note and read it again and again (never mind that it's almost falling apart due to Sora's insistent folding, and never mind the horrible blood stain on one ragged corner), his mind working furiously for a few minutes, in which Sora kept blessedly silent.

"I can tell you one thing," he finally said, rolling up the parchment, peering into Sora's face. "I'd hate to be you right now."

The Wielder's face fell as he dropped down sitting on the edge of his bed, putting his head in his hands, looking the very image of defeat. Riku crossed his arms and leaned against the door. The silence was unusual and irritatingly deafening.

"I called His Majesty days ago, Riku. He explained to me everything. If I don't seal the remaining hearts, well..." he trailed off, his voice muffled by his gloves.

"Why won't the King do it himself? I mean, he did go out and seek Ansem the Wise, and left the throne to Queen Minnie--"

"He's got a kingdom to run and worlds to watch over, darn it!" Sora cut him off, snapping his head up, clearly angry. With whom, well, that was a different matter. "He has duties and responsibilities on a major scale! On the other hand, I'm just a kid living on an island in the middle of the _damn blue ocean_, with _absolutely no major _duty to anyone, with no one to need _me_ or damn _care_!"

"Who told you that?" Riku carefully asked, now a bit afraid of Sora's (he didn't go and just _yell_ like that) reaction.

"Who _else_, Riku. King Mickey." he huffed angrily. "This is so unfair. Why, of all the _damn_ Key_blade_ Wielders out there, why does he have to choose _me_!"

_Now_ he was scaring Riku. Who thought Mr. Happy-go-Lucky could harbor such anger (and spew it out too, just like _that_)? But like the rational and straight-to-the point person that he was, Riku reread the letter again and asked the question that kept bugging him. "Well, it comes down to two choices, buddy: love or duty?"

"I..._what_? Love or duty! Now I know why you got Advanced Philosophy." Sora grinned before frowning again (that grin kept popping up in the _most_ unusual places). "If I don't go, more Heartless will appear, and you guys will be... you know..." he looked up pleadingly. "Listen, Riku, I don't have any choice! It's a lose-lose situation for me."

"Listen to me. I'll admit, I _don't_ want you to go (Sora made a little spluttering noise at this point) but you _have _to do what your heart tells you. Sounds cheesy, but hey, that heart saved us all a couple of times before." Riku smiled slightly. "Don't let the King push you into this. But if you go, Kairi _will_ be mad as hell for breaking that promise we made. Can't we all go together on this trip?"

"You know we can't." Sora gazed at him balefully. "Should I tell Kai? Should I ask her whether I should---"

"You're hopeless, Sora. Yeah, I meant _that_."

----------

Kairi was sitting on the docks _again_, reliving a particular moment of her life that she just _knew_ she'd cherish forever. (And so _that _was the signal for Naminé to start giggling again.)

"Uh... Kai?"

Her head whipped around to see her _prince_ that she was daydreaming about, coming up on the dock she had her feet dangling from.

"Kairi... I have to tell you something."

----------

That was a _particularly_ long chapter right there. How will Kairi take the news? Wait for my next chapter. Reviews please. Flames are accepted. :D


	3. Listen

**A/N: **I'm back guys! It's weird, huh, that the first chapter's _long_ as hell while the second's a bit short. (What do you mean, you didn't read the reposted first chapter? It's got major sugar-coated fluffiness at the end!) I'm still venting out because I got thisclose to beating Sephy (Only _one_ bar of life left, darn it) when one wrong-timed Elixir (_yes_, it was my last one) finished me off. Grrr. And those guys who just read, please, review too, I want to know what you guys think about this ficcy. Please, review!

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer:** I do _not_ own Kingdom Hearts. There. I said it. Now please stop bugging me.

**III:** L**i**s_t_**e**_n_

Kairi stared down at the piece of parchment Sora had handed her a moment ago. She _knew_ something was up when she saw his face not that long ago. Sadness didn't belong on Sora's face. It just...didn't _fit_.

She smiled up at him. "So... when are we going?"

"Did you just read it, Kai?" Sora asked her unbelievingly, kneeling and pointing to one sentence over her shoulder: _Do not endanger a princess of heart_. "Don't you---"

"Crystal, Sora. Did you really think I'd let you leave me waiting again?"

"This isn't a game, you know."

"Sure I know that. That's why we three have to stick together." She gazed towards the sunset. "Just think... going someplace new... Riku's gonna love this..." She trailed off, daydreaming about Keyblades and white doors with huge keyholes.

"I have to go alone, Kairi."

"_Suure_ you do," she replied sarcastically. Knowing Sora, sentences like _that_ don't stay true too long, because Sora wasn't the serious type. (Riku made up for that and more.) "But that doesn't mean we can't bend the rules a bit---"

"I mean it." The note of finality in Sora's voice would be trivial, coming from anyone else, but coming from _him_...it was frightening. Kairi turned to look at Sora's face, and she could feel her heart crumble when she saw his resolve.

"No you don't," she whispered. The _hell_ he didn't mean that. After all that had happened (and her mind flashed back to what happened on _this_ very dock, but this time, Naminé was whimpering softly instead of giggling) he couldn't just _go_ and leave her hanging in the air. "You don't mean that."

"I'm sorry, Kai," he said, wrapping his arms around her, his voice breaking for the first time since she'd known him. " I really have to go. Alone. Riku... _damn_, _you_ can't go with me. I won't stand putting you in harm's way. If the other Keyholes out there are sealed, then you--and the others will be safe."

Kairi blinked back the tears that were threatening to fall as she wrenched herself free from Sora's grip. She was _not_ going to let him go, not after all that they had been through together. Not after they _found_ each other. Hell no. "And I suppose being a _princess_ of heart, hanging out with two _Wielders_ on an island where _Heartless_ are around every corner waiting to rip my heart out, is _safe_! Do you think _leaving_ me will keep me safe? I'm not a defenseless girl anymore, Sora, I can take care of myself!"

"Riku'll protect you."

"That's _it_! You're giving me away for some stupid reason? You've done _enough_ for this world, for all the worlds out there! It's high time _they_ did you a favor and left you alone to _live_ a _normal_ life!"

"It's not a stupid reason. It's what's best for everyone."

"Does your everyone include Riku? Does it include _everyone_ who'll miss you, for that matter? Does that everyone include _me_?" Tears streamed down her cheeks. "I _don't_ think that's _best_ for me, Sora. For _us_. Why don't you just _ignore_ it, then it'll go away."

"It won't _ever_ go away." He stated calmly, voice regaining its strength.

"You _can't_ save everybody, Sora. You're not expendable like that, going when someone tells you to. Will you please just stop _listening_ to the King! It's _your_ life he's ruining, not his!"

Sora averted his gaze and stared at the sunset. The silence was so heavy she could _touch_ it. Kairi was _mad_. How _dare_ he do this to her.

"Are you even _listening_ to me?"

"Listen to _me_, Kairi Dalmasca!" he bellowed as he pushed her down, pinning her shoulders to the dock, his face hovering close to hers. She had never, once in her entire life, seen him in a rage like this. He was _Sora_, the _happy_ kid, for crying out loud. And she realized she was _afraid_ of him. She was shaking all over. Screw afraid. She was _scared_ to death. (Naminé, miraculously, had fallen silent, because she _knew_ Sora could _kill_ when he was angry. He _did_ kill almost the whole Organization.) Scared to death and _crying_.

"It's _my _life and it's _my_ choice. I don't go by anyone's rules, damn it. I'm going because I have to, because someone up there _gave_ me this huge key, and I can't do anything about _that_," he breathed, bringing his face closer. "I _have _to, Ka, I don't _want_ to. I don't _want_ to leave my home."

"Then _why_ are you going?" she managed to say. She could see her sobbing self reflected in Sora's eyes, which, she realized, were shimmering with unshed tears. The happy kid was crying too. _That_ scared her more.

"Because..."he choked slightly on the words. She could feel _his_ tears falling on her face and mingling with hers. "Because I don't want to lose you again."

"I don't want the Heartless to go and rip your life apart again." He said through gritted teeth as he eased his grip on her shoulders. "I don't want anyone else's life to get ripped apart."

"But you don't have to go _alone_."

"Yes, I do."

"No."

"Yes."

"_No_!" She howled. "You _will_ wait until your birthday tomorrow so I can get Riku to convince you!"

"I already talked to him."

"This conversation is _over_!" she said firmly as she stood up. "You _will_ not go until we, at least, can talk about this, Sora Hikari. I'm not going down without a fight."

----------

"Kai..."

"_Tomorrow _morning, Sora. We're coming with you, whether you like it or not."

_I most certainly don't like it_, Roxas thought bitterly as the two continued to bicker, or, as Sora tried to get a word in while Kairi continued her tirade. He didn't like it at all, but since he was Sora's _nobody_, he was _in_ for the ride, whether he liked it or not. _That_ was unchangeable. What he wouldn't give to just fade away, instead of living someone else's life.

"I told you, I won't change my--"

"You just wait."

He just _hated_ Sora right now. Sure, he can go leave the island and leave his princess, Roxas didn't care, but why did he have to take Roxas along? He wasn't as _righteous_ as his Other, he had _Naminé _to look after.

_Roxas! We will meet again. And then we can talk about everything. _

Well, they _did_ meet again, but they never had the chance to talk, being absorbed by their Others and all. He never had the chance to ask Naminé whether that sketch that he asked her to draw just before leaving the Castle That Never Was in search of Sora. He never had the chance to just _touch_ Naminé (It _was_ always Kairi's hand Sora held, not Roxas holding Naminé's). And the way things were going, he may never will.

"Don't. Go." Kairi huffed as she turned and walked away.

He knew Sora wouldn't change his mind. No matter what Kairi said, he'll go _tonight_.

_Sora, please._

"Naminé!"

----------

Kairi stopped walking. "_Don't_ start with me again, Sora. Naminé has no say in this. She _wants_ Roxas to stay."

"Kairi, please, let _me_ talk to Naminé." She spun around.

"Sora, what the _heck_ do you think you're saying!"

"I'm not Sora! I'm _Roxas_!" Sora huffed. That's when she realized it was Roxas talking. She could almost see Sora and Roxas shimmer repeatedly between each other. "Naminé, _please_, I know you're listening! I don't care what it takes, but I'm going to break free, and I'll come back to you!"

She smiled at him sadly. "I don't think Naminé can hear you, Roxas, she's crying too hard."

----------

"Kai_ri_, what _are_ you doing!" Riku almost yelled as he spotted her sitting at _their_ kitchen counter. (Seeing Kairi at _that_ early in the morning woke him up better than one of Sora's practical ice-water-in-bucket-on-door jokes.) "_How_ did you get in? The door's kinda... _locked_."

She glanced up from the mug (the one shaped like a White Mushroom head) she was holding and smiled sweetly. "I jimmied your lock. Seriously, you should change your doorknob, it's falling to bits."

Riku arched an eyebrow. "Spit it out. You want to surprise Sora."

"Yayness, Riku, you figured me out," she said, rolling her eyes. She slid off the chair. " _And_ I want to make up with him for yesterday. I figured I was too hard on him."

"You mean, make out." he snickered as he watched scarlet rise up in her cheeks. (_Hell_ she was beautiful when she blushed, he admitted that.) He took his own favorite mug (the Sea-salt promotional DiZ gave him, which he suspected was a sneaky hint that _he_ should buy the popsicles next time) and poured some cocoa in.

"_So_ not, Riku. Uhhh... do you think he's already awake?" She asked nervously, fiddling with her mug's handle.

"Haven't heard anything. Knowing him he's still sleeping with his mouth wide open."

Kairi giggled, sounding excited and nervous at the very prospect of having the honor of waking up Sora (which, as easy as it may sound, was a real pain in the neck to _do_, some days he just wouldn't _budge_ from bed) and the first to wish him a happy birthday. He felt a twinge of jealousy that he knew would never go away, unless Kairi saw otherwise.

"I can't stand this, I'm gonna go," she said, standing up and balancing her mug on what seemed like a photo album.

"Good luck," he called as Kairi went up to Sora's room. "And _please_, _lock_ the door if you don't want me to barge in and catch you doing---_something_."

"Shut up, Riku!"

He grinned to himself as he helped himself to those tiny marshmallows he always put in _his_ cocoa, dropping some into his mug and watching them bob and sink.

_Down, up, down, up, down, up, down, sink._

_Down, up, down, up, down, up, down, sink._

_Down, up, down, up, down, up, down, sink._

_Yes_, mornings made him feel that way. Especially mornings when your dream girl's waiting when you come down.

_Down, up, down, up, down, up, down, sink._

_Down, up, down, up, down, up, down, sink._

He was drowning his ninth marshmallow and contemplating whether he should drink _now_ when he heard something crash to the floor above. _Hope they don't get too..._rough, he grinned again as an evil thought came to mind, _but I'm gonna go..._check. He made his way to Sora's room, where he supposed the two were getting _so_ frisky they were _accidentally_ breaking stuff.

The door was ajar. "I _told_ you guys to lock the door," he called, smiling mischievously. He pushed it open.

"R-riku..." Kairi was kneeling on the floor, the remains of her mug scattered on the floor, the cocoa spreading out.

The bed was carefully made, the pillows lined up exactly. Empty except for the hollow champagne bottle and the note under it.

-_Sorry. Riku, now _you_ take care of Kai. Yeah, and tell her I took her lucky charm. Thanks. See you around.-_

He glanced at Kairi and just shook his head resignedly.

----------

Don't take me wrong, I _like_ drowning marshmallows, thank you very much. Review, please. You guys who just _read_, please _review_, it's kinda disheartening to write when people just _read_ and then don't have _anything_ to say about it. See? Two chapters, only four reviews. Does my writing suck _that_ much? (Roxas: stop _whining_ and get on with it!) Flamers, go ahead, _make my day_. Now I'm gonna go and take Sephy on _again_, darn it!


	4. Missing You

**A/N: **It's ten in the evening, and here I am, writing this chapter. _Damn_ I'm _so_ slow. A chapter a day. So anyways I finally kicked Seph's butt. Now I'm stuck with something more horrible: that _poster_ job thing in Twilight Town. Why, oh why...

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer:** I _do_ own Kingdom Hearts and the Final Fantasy franchise. Yeah, I do. I have to go hide now, the feds are after me.

**IV: **_M_**i_ss_i**ng **Y**_o_**u**

It's been a couple of days since Sora vanished into the night, and rumors spread through the Academy like wildfire. Of course, his fanclub got _majorly_ depressed, but they soon forgot about him when they joined forces with _Riku's_ band of groupies (much to his horror) and started a plea to let one of _them_ live with _him_ (and he had to admit: living alone _was_ a pain now that there was no Sora he could annoy). Now a group of those particular girls (the militant arm, he suspected) were following him as he made his way through the Academy's usual dismissal rush hour.

"He's _so_ hot, I swear."

"Too bad Sora went back to Twilight Town, at least, that's what I heard."

"I'm gonna go hunt for him the next time we go there."

"I'd come with you, but I'd rather stay here and try to get Riku (all of them sighed) from that girl Kairi."

"_Hah_ as if you can, oh god, he's looking back!"

Riku glanced over his shoulder just in time to see a gaggle of girls duck (**a/n: **bloody _hell_ where did I get _that_?) into a classroom. Twilight Town? Now _who_ came up with that bright story? All he knew was Sora would be anywhere _else_ than Twilight Town, since _that_ would probably drive Roxas berserk. He thought about turning right into the Academy quad, but he had a nagging feeling the posters for the Halloween Dance were already being set up, meaning sometime right _now_ Selphie would be bugging people to be on the Dance Committee. _That_ would be something he'd rather live without. He decided to go straight instead and walk the long (scenic _and_ romantic) corridor to the main gates (_and_ probably be ambushed by girls on the way). He caught the unfamiliar sight of Kairi walking alone.

"Kai!"

She looked over her shoulder and smiled slightly. "Hi Riku."

He jogged up beside her. "You should smile more often. A frown never suited everyone." It _was_ true, and Kairi rarely smiled since Sora disappeared. She just smiled weakly.

A thought suddenly occured to Riku. His best friend, and biggest _rival_, was gone. He felt himself blush. He glanced around, checking for any rabid fangirls (ever _seen_ a rabid dog? that's how they act whenever they see him and Kairi together.) and sighed.

"Hey...want me to walk with you?" he asked, fiddling with a lock of hair like he always did when he was nervous.

"Mmm... Sorry, Riku, I'd rather... walk home alone," she said quietly. "Maybe next time." she added as she continued walking, leaving him behind.

"He can take care of himself, you know." he suddenly said.

"I know, Riku...but I can't stop worrying," she replied as she stopped walking. "I miss him." Kairi turned around, and Riku saw her eyes start to shimmer with tears again.

"Don't cry, Kairi. He'll come back."

"When he does, Riku, I'll make sure he'll _regret_ doing this to me." she sniffed, and laughed. "Thanks for talking to me. See you tomorrow."

"Bye, _princess_," he said, making sure Kairi didn't hear the second word. He blushed again as he watched Kairi walk away.

----------

This is _weird_, Sora thought to himself as he stared up into Twilight Town's sky, which was still, unsurprisingly, _twilight_, even though he had seen the Gummi Terminal clock read halfway till noon when he left. Roxas had _mercifully_ remained silent (actually, Sora had been quite worried about what had gotten _into_ Roxas) since he had entered the town's Terminal. He _knew_ this town had a Keyhole somewhere. He figured he'd start here, since it seemed the most familiar.

_Darn Keyhole_, he thought, annoyed. He never knew Twilight Town would be so _huge_.

"Hey, you! Out of the way!" he jumped as a very irritated postboy slid past him on a skateboard.

_Skateboard. I can beat him anytime._

"Roxas, what's up with you? You've been so...quiet." He said, walking around the Town's Station Heights.

_The Organization found me here, Sora, and when that bastard DiZ caught me, he erased my memories as an Org member and stuck me in another _here_ so they can get me to merge with you._

"Oh. This is the town where we woke up."

_Yeah._

"Maybe I shouldn't have come here. Being back here makes you...miss being just _you_."

_Shut it and just find the stupid Keyhole so we can get out of here sooner._

And with that Roxas stopped the conversation (good thing though, people were starting to stare at Sora talking to himself). He continued to walk around, searching for anything that remotely _looked_ like a Keyhole.

----------

Two hours later, and no luck. He could hear Roxas grumbling (actually more like muttering murderously something about Ansem) in his head, and it was driving him _crazy. Again._ He had already combed through the main Town (checked and cross-referenced with the 50-munny tourist map) and Sunset Station, fought yet _another_ Struggle battle with that Setzer, dodged a fight with Seifer, hidden from Olette and Twilight Academy's _insane_ independent study, gotten through half a dozen sea-salt popsicles, _and_ about a million photographs from Pence. Sadly, no Keyhole.

_Stupid Keyhole._

"You got that right," he said to his Other Side (capitals were _so_ pacifying) as he decided to check out the old mansion on the other side of the woods.

Halfway through the Tram Common raindrops started to fall. He stared up disbelievingly at the twilight sky.

_Get used to it._

"I _am_ going to get through this," Sora muttered under his breath as he drew his hood, "without going _crazy. _Yeah."

He pushed his way through the crowd of people towards the hole in the wall which was the entrance to Twilight Woods (which, up to now, nobody had the _brilliant_ idea to repair the hole and make it a proper _door_).

"Hey! You in the black hoodie!"

He whipped around, Keyblade coalescing into his clenched fist.

"Roxas! That you?" A female voice called. Sora stared around Tram Common, almost completely deserted because of the _now_ downpour, searching for the owner. A girl of about seventeen (so _technically_ she wasn't a girl anymore, right?) had poked her head out from a window.

"Ro--oh, sorry," she apologized as he came closer. "I thought you were somebody else."

"Obviously."

_I know her... I do. I _hate_ DiZ so much right _now_ for erasing my mind._

"Why don't you come in? It's raining hard, you're soaking wet. Drink's on me," she offered before shutting the window.

"What was _that_?" he said to himself, backing away, and spotting the sign above the window in the process. "7th Heaven Bar and Restaurant," he read aloud. A _bar_? Who knew Twilight Town had a _bar_? A nearby door eased open and the said girl beckoned him in.

"Uh... I don't think---"

"It's raining cats and dogs out there. You can't go anywhere if you go down with the flu."

_She's got a point. Get sick, and we'll be staying here longer, and I swear, I'll make you regret that. What is _wrong_ with you? Get the hell inside!_

"If Kairi knew what I'm doing right now, she'd kill me."

_Not if I kill you first._

"You okay?" she asked, peering at him through the rain. He shrugged as he followed her inside.

The 7th Heaven wasn't what Sora had in mind when he thought _bar_ (or maybe Riku had told him too much about the _other_ type of bar). It was like a mix of fancy restaurant and go-ahead-put-your-feet-up café. It was a nice place, as far as he could tell, with the overhead lighting and everything. It looked a lot like the restaurant where he and Kairi had their first date. He sighed.

"So what'll you have?" she asked, getting behind the counter. He chose a random seat in front of the bar and set the Keyblade on the counter.

"Uh..." he stammered (he was doing a lot of _uh's _lately), scanning among the bottles displayed on the glass cabinet behind her. A bottle of champagne, so much like the King's message bottle, made his heart sink lower. Why did _everything_ have to make him remember Kairi?

_Ginger ale._

"I'll have a ginger ale, thanks." He said, wondering what made Roxas say that (and _why_ he ordered what his Other Side wanted). Fiddling with the crown keychain on his Keyblade he watched the girl (ebony black hair with brown highlights on one side, about 5'4", pale white skin, most probably soft and cuddly, nice waist, nice---o-_kay_, _that_ was Riku talking) fill a glass with his order.

_This place's familiar_.

"There you go," she said, setting the glass down in front of him. He took a tentative sip.

_Man, even the ale's familiar._

"Sorry for earlier," she smiled, unloading a tray of glasses and wiping them down.

"It's okay, really." He gave a start. "You called me Roxas, didn't you?"

"Yeah. You _really_ look a lot like him, um..."

"Sora," he said hastily.

"Rinoa Heartilly. Everyone around here calls me Rin," she introduced herself as she viciously attacked a stubborn glass stain. "I'm the acting owner of this place." She grinned when she saw the confused look Sora knew he had on. "Tifa Lockhart actually owns this bar. She kinda left, said she was going to look for somebody."

"Tifa..." he said softly. Right. She was the one who gave him his Fenrir keychain.

_Rin. I know who she is. Just _can't_ grasp who. _And so Roxas started ranting on and _on_ about DiZ.

"I know it sounds crazy, but you're like Roxas' _twin_," Rinoa peered at him again, her eyes narrowing in disbelief. "Chop some hair off and go blonde, there, you're Roxas. You know, he used to sit _there_, on _exactly_ the same stool."

"Sounds like you know him pretty well," he commented, twirling the straw around his glass absentmindedly.

"He used to come in here with his three friends all the time," she elaborated, now getting started on a particularly complicated zombie glass. "Roxas was the only guy I knew who could get _drunk_ on ginger ale. I didn't even _know_ you could get drunk on ginger ale."

_Oh, riiiight. Rin. I _knew_ she always spiked my ginger ale. I'll get her, sneaky girl she is. _Roxas, of all the things that he could possibly do as Sora's Nobody (keep it _down!_), laughed as if fondly recollecting some memory.

"What the hell..?" he said aloud. Luckily Rinoa was too preoccupied with the zombie glass. "Huh?" He shrugged hastily.

"So, Sora, I've never seen you around here. What brings you to Twilight Town?"

He tapped his Keyblade mutely and drained the glass, setting it down with a loud _clink_. Rinoa raised a well-groomed eyebrow.

"Keyblade business."

"Oh, so _that's_ a Keyblade. Where're you from?"

"Destiny Islands."

"When're you coming back?"

Sora shrugged, knowing that he'll never know for sure if he _is_ coming back.

"Not so talkative, huh?" she laughed, setting the glass down. "You remind me of someone else."

"Yeah, sure, whatever," he squirmed under her gaze, which _now_ just had turned more intense. Was it something he said? Roxas was still laughing, though this time at _him_. "So... you lived here since..?" he asked, attempting another conversation.

Rinoa cocked her head to one side. " 'bout ten years ago. Kinda moved here."

"Uh, but ten years ago," his brows drew together," I don't think you could've just _moved_ from anywhere else but from Twilight Town itself." That _was_ true, Gummi Ships back then weren't commercially available or anything, due to massive Heartless patrols between Worlds, not to mention a World's protective barrier around itself.

_Wrong thing to say._

"Hell," he muttered under his breath, wishing Roxas was still laughing. He looked up from his glass to Rinoa, who was standing still. "Sorry for talking."

"No, no, it's okay, I've been telling that to everyone for years," she sighed and leaned on her elbows. "Just a bit surprised that you would bring it up. You _are_ a Keyblade Master, aren't you? Like Roxas."

"I...I suppose so," he said nervously as Roxas yelled "She _knew_!" in his head. "You _knew_ Roxas was a Keyblade Master?"

"I didn't know he was a Keyblade Master, but I knew he was... different. Like he was missing something---hey _Watts_! Don't forget the _sign_!"

He looked over his shoulder and realized, with a shock, that the restaurant was practically empty. Someone ( that Watts guy, he supposed ) had turned the sign that read _Restaurant Closed---Inn Still Open 24/7 _outwards. "Man, sorry, you're already closed."

"Oh, actually we're always open, you only have to ask," she said (and Roxas said it along with her, like he had memorized the line or something) as he turned back to face her. "It's an inside secret. Tifa told me that. Sooo... back to Roxas," she continued, picking up Sora's glass and carrying it over to the sink, " the guy who _hated_ the end of summer vacation."

_That_ made Roxas start ranting again, this time about some _seven_ wonders of Twilight Town.

"Wait a minute," Rinoa put a hand on her hip. "It kinda looks like you _know_ Roxas."

"I suppose so." (Not that he _supposed_ so, he more than _knew_ Roxas, he was _his_ Nobody, but he'd rather Rinoa thought him sane than tell him Roxas' currently residing in his head.)

"Oh well. When you see him again tell him to come back here. He won't _believe_ what happened. It's like, _poof_, everyone around here forgot he even _existed_. (His Other Side suddenly stopped ranting, which was a bare relief.) I tried asking Hayner, Pence, and Olette, the three guys he used to be with, and they look at me like I've gone insane or something. _Who's Roxas_? they ask me. I should be the one to ask them whether _they're_ crazy. I _know_ Roxas lived here. You don't believe me, don't you?"

Sora shook his head vehemently (partly in answer to Rinoa's question, and partly to clear his head of _Roxas'_ thoughts) and stared at her, who started fiddling with a ribbed sky blue armband. "I've heard stranger things. I believe you."

"Well, you _are_ a Keyblade Master after all." She sighed, picking another glass to clean.

_That_ was another missing fragment of his Other Side's shattered memory. So Ansem the Wise sacrificed _Roxas_ so he, Sora, could awaken. He _did_ read the Secret Ansem Report, but he really didn't think someone pictured as so _benevolent_ would even _think_ of hurting someone, let alone erase someone's existence.

_Benevolent? Hah. Man, I miss being here._

"So... you still hadn't answered me, Rin, about where you came from," he said, now tracing circles around the keychain.

_Curiousity killed the cat. _

"Um..."

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, " he added hastily.

"No, it's okay," Rinoa replied. "I guess you've heard my story a million times before. Heartless tore my homeworld apart ten years ago. Suddenly this _witch_ Maleficent popped out of nowhere, bringing her army of those horrible Heartless to the Garden. The world's heart was taken, and us citizens were either turned into one of _them_ or flung out. Last thing I remember was her changing Radiant Garden to _Hollow Bastion_. Then the next thing I knew, me and Tifa woke up here in Twilight Town. We've been here ever since."

"Well, that's nothing to worry about," he mused. "Maleficent's, well, disposed of. I sure hope nobody brings her back _this_ time."

Her eyes widened. "You've _been_ to Hollow Bastion!" she whispered weakly.

"It's called Radiant Garden now, ever since Tron got control of the town's computer system back."

She was gripping the glass in her hand so tightly her knuckles were white. "Oh, _Hyne_," she was muttering softly.

"Oh yeah, that's where we met Tifa. She gave me this." he took out his Fenrir keychain. "Really strong girl, _pretty_ hard to beat."

"Did...did she find Cloud?" she managed to say.

Sora nodded. "Kind of... him and Sephiroth disappeared somewhere, and left her standing. She's off to find him again. _Light is easy to find_, she said."

"Sephiroth...oh Cloud brought him back again," Rinoa gave a start. "So Cloud's _alive_!" she clapped her hand (and the dirty rag with it) to her mouth and giggled. "Sorry, stupid question." Her eyes widened again. "Any chance you've met a Yuffie Kisaragi there?"

"Grand Ninja Yuffie? Perky, hyper ninja with _huge_ shuriken?"

"Merlin?"

"Yeah."

Her voice wavered. "Cid?"

"The cursing mechanic? I've been on his wrong side," he answered, recalling the instance when _he_ butted heads with the temperamental tobacco-chewing pilot. (_That_ involved a whole _lot_ of cursing, some he had never even _thought_ of before.)

"Aerith?"

"She's scary." (When she stared, _everyone_ quailed, even Leon.) "Hey, Rin... don't break down like that (which, effectively, made her cry even harder)."

_Idiot. You're an idiot with girls, _Roxas was laughing.

"Shut it," Sora muttered angrily at his Other Side (_yes_, never forget the capitals) as he tried to figure out Rinoa.

"Sorry," she said. "I...I just thought everyone was _dead_... oh, I'm so happy..." She trained her big _brown_ eyes on him.

"Squall?"

"Huh?" he racked his brain, but as far as he could remember, he'd never met a Squall before. "I don't think I've---_Rin!_"

The glass that she was holding had shattered, sending shards (good thing he had cast a well-timed Reflectga) flying, which miraculously missed her.

"Oh _Hyne_ I'm so sorry," she sobbed as she turned, her hands fanning her face, to the nearby sink, her back to him. He watched as she splashed water on her face (it sounded like it) over and over again. It looked like she was trying to drown herself.

"Rin..oa?" he ventured uneasily (as Roxas had said so eloquently before, he was an _idiot_ when it came to girls crying, _that_ he admitted.), trying to get her to stop. _Those wings_, he thought to himself as he noticed the pair of white wings embroidered on her back, _I've seen those before. _"Uh, Rinoa, are you talking about Leon?" he asked, remembering Leon had a pair of similar wings on the back of _his_ leather jacket (and he kind of wondered _why _someone like Leon would have _that_ as a design).

The water stopped running, to his relief. "Leon?"

"There's this guy who--"

"Oh _riiight_. Squall _Leonhart_..."

"Huh?"

"His real name's Squall Leonhart..." she said dreamily, turning to him (and water dripping down her chest---_next time, he'll never listen to Riku) _and setting her elbows on the table (was it just him or did the shards of glass _move_?). "Leon...why would he change his name...?"

"Why don't you go to Radiant Garden and ask him yourself?" he suggested, seeing that Rinoa would want not _only_ to ask.

She snapped out of her dreaminess and shook her head slowly. "I can't."

"Why not? The Terminal's just across Central Station. You could leave the bar to someone."

"I can't go back." She bit her lip. "I'm exiled from Radiant Garden."

_Whoa. Exiled._

Sora, for once, agreed with Roxas' thoughts.

Rinoa smiled bitterly at his bewildered face. "Ever heard of the Sorceress War? (Sora, at this point, nodded weakly, he never _did_ pay much attention to Worlds' History) Well, that was exactly why I'm exiled."

"You're a _sorceress_!"

"Yeah. My own father exiled me because Ansem the Wise told him to. The townspeople were afraid of what I might do. They even blamed _me_, thinking I was in cahoots with Maleficent. I didn't do _anything_ like that. Ansem _wasn't _so wise when he ordered my father to give up his only daughter. I _hated_ him for that."

_She's not the only one who hates Ansem._

"Sad."

"They told me it was for the greater good, and that it would be better for me. Dad told me he's sending me away because he loves me and doesn't want me to get hurt... Well, I went along with it, smiling all the way, pretending it was all okay..." she sighed, "but deep down, it hurt so much..."

_I won't stand putting you in harm's way. If the other Keyholes out there are sealed, then you--and the others will be safe._

_I don't think that's best for me, Sora. For us._

"Sora..? Hey!"

"Wha..?" he jerked back from Rinoa, who was waving a hand in front of his face.

"Spaced out, huh? No wonder, it's getting pretty late."

He looked over his shoulder, and, not surprisingly, it was still twilight.

"It's always twilight here," She said, seeing his surprise. "Why don't you stay for the night? Our rate's pretty reasonable, it's only 100 munny a night."

"Sure. Thanks."

_Sure...thanks a lot._

---------

So there. Chapter 4. Review. _Please_.

Okay, I'm gonna go post posters now.


	5. The Lock Breaks

**A/N: **Chapter 5 huh. Well, I'm still kinda stuck on the poster thing. Closest I got was 48 seconds. _Bloody_ hell I've tried everything. So anyway, while some of you guys out there are just starting on your summer vacation, here term starts June 13th, meaning chapters might get posted weekly by then. O-_kay_ enough rambling.

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer: **I already _told _you I own Kingdom Hearts.

_No! My heart belongs to _me

That's _not_ what I meant. Ever heard of sarcasm, Roxas?

_Shut up._

**V: T**_h**e**_L**o**c**k **_B_**r_ea_k**s

Sora stared at the ceiling as he listened to the steady pounding of raindrops on his room's window. He had been asleep for about two hours when a _loud_ clap of thunder rudely jolted him awake. It was still _quite_ disconcerting how it could _storm_ like that in _twilight_. He had tried to go to sleep again, but his conversation with Rinoa kept popping up in his head for some reason. _Kairi_ kept popping up in his head for a reason he knew _very_ well.

He yawned as he sat up and threw back the covers, racking his brain on how on _earth_ would he find the Keyhole in _this_ weather. The King had advised him to keep a low profile to avoid troublemakers and people who nose in the King's business. (which made him think: who _else_ was out there, trying to do him in?) He started yawning uncontrollably, rubbing sleep from his eyes. His gaze fell on the full-size mirror at the back of the door, and instead of himself, he saw Roxas, as always, sleeping peacefully, back leaning on glass.

Sora felt guilty for him, in a way. All he _really_ wanted was to meet his Other, not to get caught in a crossfire between Organization XIII and a man obsessed with revenge. Now that he had merged back with Sora, Roxas _did_ exist as a separate person, but only in Sora's mind (which made for a pretty mad Nobody), which, in his opinion, was much, _much_ worse than being sent back to Kingdom Hearts. He didn't exactly _relish_ the idea of living someone else's life, thank you very much.

_You sure as hell don't, Sora._

"Roxas."

He had woken up at the sound of his Other's thoughts, and was now moodily leaning against the mirror frame. Sora stared at his reflection; that was what Roxas _was_, a mere _reflection_ of him.

"We're going to search again."

_In the middle of night in a pouring downpour. Gee, what fun._

"It isn't the _middle of the night_, it's still twilight outside. You can't do anything about me going out."

Roxas' face darkened as he crossed his arms. _Don't remind me._

Sora relented as he saw his Other Side's dejected expression. "Listen, Roxas, you don't have to lash out on me like what you've been doing lately. I'm _sorry_, okay? For---"

_For what! For turning into a Heartless and letting me exist? For _letting me exist_ but as _you_? For killing off the whole Organization, including _me_? Honestly, you _are_ a good Other, but I _hate _being _you! _I want to exist as _Roxas, _not Sora! _He sat on the bed on the other side of the mirror and put his head in his hands. _I want to be who I really am..._

He stared as his Other in the mirror for a few minutes before heading out into the maelstrom outside.

----------

"Your Majesty, this is _serious._"

"Yes, for once I agree with him, King Mickey, you should not have entrusted---"

"Chaos and prosperity, we _cannot_ risk prosperity _for_ chaos."

"Silence! Who _told_ you the Wielder of light put the Keyblade to use _that_ easily?"

"Your Highness, we just assumed---"

"Assumptions are very far from _fact_, minister. No_body_ will disturb the balance between light and darkness by tampering with Keyholes."

"But the Keyblade---"

"Meeting dismissed, Adviser's Court. Good _night."_

----------

Roxas was whistling, and _that _ was something he hadn't done in a long time. He watched (through Sora's eyes, of course, how else?) as his Other made his way through Twilight Woods (good thing half the raindrops that fell didn't make it past the canopy of leaves), twigs crunching under his (huge, yes) sneakers, which were now plastered with mud.

_Why_ was he whistling? Because it was the only thing he could think of doing. Besides, it annoyed Sora to no end.

"I would absolutely _hate_ to have you as a twin, Roxas." Sora said aloud, cutting through branches with a dripping Keyblade.

_You don't say! Sora, and I thought you liked me...?_

Bad as their moods were, they couldn't help but crack a smile. Humor had, at least, kept _both _of them sane.

Soon enough Sora reached the safety of the old dilapidated mansion that stood at the edge of Twilight Woods. "Place is falling to bits. Perfect for a Keyhole to be hiding in."

_The seventh wonder of Twilight Town_, Roxas added, seeing that the Old Mansion still hadn't changed a bit. That treasure chest that once contained a (essential back then) Potion still stood there, not even gathering dust. He could _feel_ other Nobodies there, but they did not dare attack one of their own without direct orders. He sighed and watched as Sora touched the beam (built by DiZ... how he _hated_ him) and warped to the simulated Twilight Town.

Suddenly a Gambler coalesced in front of him, cards flying out of its sleeves. His Other summoned his Keyblade and slashed at it, its cards flying around them.

"_Traitor_."

"What the _hell_ did it just..._say!_"

_I am _not_ a traitor!_

"_Turned on the Organization. Look where you are now. You... a reflection."_

_No._

"Heck, just _fade_, no messing with Roxas' head!" Sora yelled as he brought down his Keyblade, slicing the Gambler in half.

Roxas was hearing voices now. Voices of his faded comrades. "_Traitor._"

_I am NOT a TRAITOR! _he yelled. He just wanted to meet his Other. He just wanted his _own_ heart. All of them did. Was it a _crime_ to _want_ to exist? Was it such a bad thing to wish for? Kingdom Hearts was their _only_ hope. What did they _do_ to warrant a death sentence from those who _exist_!

"Roxas, don't _listen _to them," he could hear Sora vaguely as he continued to fight the onslaught of Nobodies, and with each Nobody faded, a voice added to those haunting him.

"_Traitor._"

He just wanted to _exist_, _damn_ it! _Now_ he hated Sora for letting him be _born_, for letting him live a life only _borrowed_.

"_Traitor._"

He _hated_ him. He _hated_ everything that ever had the joy of _existing completely_.

"_Traitor._"

"Roxas---"

_Shut UP, Sora, don't tell me you're sorry, because I know you'll _never_ be. You just had to destroy us, to reclaim someone you love, us who had just wanted to exist, is that such a crime? Is wanting to feel such a crime that you had to destroy our only hope, our only chance, our only dream? Empty shells, deprived of feeling, all we ever had was the urge to live, to feel, to enjoy a heart, is that such a CRIME? _Roxas was _angry_, he was _hating_ but he knew he couldn't, he was only _remembering_ some long-forgotten emotion buried deep inside his Other's heart, and _that_ made remembering _emotions _hurt even more. Even getting _hurt_ was a distant memory recalled.

"_Traitor._"

_Living a life only borrowed, seeing through someone else's eyes---_

"Stop it. Guilt. I _feel_ it everytime I look in the mirror, when I see you."

_At least you can _feel!

"You don't even _know_ the burden of feeling! How guilt feels. How pain feels. How _anger_ feels."

_I don't _know_ because _you _destroyed our only chance to do so!_

"I...did...NOT!" Sora roared at him. Roxas recoiled from his Other's rage, rage that he never knew Sora, Keyblade Master, could _feel_.

Sora swung his Keyblade up and Twilight Town faded into tiny flying bits of data around him and dissolved into the World That Never Was, all _darkness_ and angst.

"I _tried_, Roxas. I _tried_ to understand _why_ Xemnas wanted Kingdom Hearts. I _tried _to convince him to leave it alone. Then I _tried_ to ignore the _guilt_ of killing someone who just _wanted _to exist. I put on a happy face for the sake of appearances. It _was_ my duty to protect the realm of light." he yelled as he obliterated Emblems like nothing on the way to the Castle, "Did you think I _had_ a choice, huh, _did you?_"

_I don't know. I don't know because I can't _feel_ the guilt of killing someone who just wanted to exist._

Roxas berated himself for rubbing salt into Sora's emotional wounds. But then again, he _couldn't_ feel guilty for doing that.

_What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?_ He asked frantically as he felt his Other stop in front of Memory's Skyscraper and gather strength.

"Making it all go away." he said simply as he aimed his Keyblade into the revolving doors, revealing the door to Kingdom Hearts itself.

----------

Sora drew in a ragged breath, ignoring Roxas' frantic questions.

He just _couldn't _take him anymore.

He just _couldn't_ lock the guilt in some hidden cranny of memory because his _Nobody_ kept drawing it out.

"Now, Roxas, I'm telling _you_ to shut up. Just _this _once." His Other Side gave a frightened squeak before falling silent.

He stared at the _huge_ white double doors that represented Kingdom Hearts. The heart of all worlds. (That's exactly _why_ it's called Kingdom Hearts, isn't it?) It was because of _this_ exact same door that every _damn_ thing changed. It was because of_ this_ colossal heart that Heartless and Nobody alike rose up.

It was because of this _world_ that so many beings (he really _did_ think Nobodies shouldn't be denied the right to _exist_, otherwise, why would he feel _guilty_?) have _vanished_ under his Keyblade.

_And_, of course, this world would make it all go away. Just like what he told Roxas.

Aiming his Keyblade at the doors, he concentrated on _his_ heart's desire right _now_.

_Those who have fallen to darkness in search of the light, Kingdom Hearts. Bring them back._

He pushed the doors open. (Strange how _easy_ it was to open them, but so darn _hard_ to close.)

He gasped at what he saw.

_What the..? We're in...the _Castle That Never Was

"This isn't what Kingdom Hearts is supposed to be..." Sora murmured, rage ebbing quickly into wonder. He was, incredibly, walking along the balcony of the Hall of Empty Melodies, where, even _more_ incredibly, _Demyx_ was practicing on his sitar.

"Ro_xas_, Superior _knows_ you and Axel took his hair _gel_," he called out. "You _might _ want to stay out of the Altar if you don't want to be scrubbing toilets for the rest of your nonexistent l_ife_." (All that in one breath, punctuated by a C minor chord struck by one of the dripping water forms.)

And with that, he faded from sight.

"You _took_ Xemnas' hair gel."

_No we didn't. We just... kinda borrowed it._

"Kinda huh--- H-hey!"

Organization members were now walking the balcony, fading and appearing, not lasting for more than five seconds at a time. It was literally a _peek_ into the existence of Organization XIII.

Saïx lugging his claymore around.

Luxord rattling of his list of members who owed him _munny_ to a bored Xemnas.

Axel whistling _innocently_.

Xigbar running _away_ from a berserk Saïx.

Xaldin sparring with Xemnas.

Demyx sparring with _Axel_.

_And _this_ is supposed to make it all go away, huh?_

Sora's face darkened. Ignoring Roxas' sarcasm, he walked on into

_The Proof of Existence. Right before Saïx got mad._

He stared around. Every piece of tile belonging to an Organization XIII member was whole, intact, and giving off a pale glow. Even more, every Proof had its own entrance, unlike the Proof _Sora_ remembered, where only Luxord and Saïx had their own standing.

Why_ are you doing this_? Roxas asked angrily.

"I'm _not_ doing _anything_," he retaliated back. "Do you really think I'd stoop _that _low?" He stepped on a tile named 'The Cloaked Schemer'. "Who _are_ these people?"

_Funny. You don't remember a single thing about Castle Oblivion. About how you killed the _people_ there like how you just _stepped_ on Zexion's tile._

"Zexion...?"

With that thought the Proof of Existence collapsed around them into shards of light. And the rest of the Organization slumped where their proof originally was.

Roxas muttered something too graphic to even _think_ about.

Sora's head whirled. He didn't know what to _feel _(and to which Roxas replied something unprintable), fear, happiness, or just plain surprise. He poked his Keyblade into the side of the nearest Organization member (he supposed so, no one _else _dared wear those black coats), making his hood fall behind. _Her_ hood.

The girl moaned (_she's no girl, she's a sadist, Larxene is)_ and struggled to sit up.

"Ohh my aching head." And so started a chain of mutters which sounded like it came from people who had just been beaten up badly.

Roxas was giggling again.

Kingdom Hearts exploded into chaos as Heartless (how in _hell _could he forget that the darkness in _here_ was _colossal_?) streamed from all directions.

The girl Larxene's head snapped into his direction and her mouth dropped open.

"I think that last shot of whiskey did me---_holy_--" Luxord had begun saying.

"_You_!" Larxene screeched as she threw several knives (from who-knows-what) at his general direction.

"Me!" Sora yelled as he threw his Keyblade at the Shadows (trying a new formation, he noticed) behind her.

"How.." Demyx was staring at his hands, clearly bewildered.

"Little punk!" The hooded figure at Larxene's side roared, revealing a young man wielding what looked like a dangerously sharp (not to mention dangerously pink) scythe.

_Marluxia. Flower girl. _Roxas snickered.

Sora began to doubt if this was a good idea after all. Half these people were trying to kill him on the spot, for a reason he had _absolutely no _idea what, except for the fact he brought them back from wherever Nobodies go when they die. He dodged the knives and rolled to dodge Marluxia's scythe, which instead cut a very unfortunate Shadow in half.

Heartless had already begun to close in, which made their current life-and-death situation lean to the _death_ side.

"Stop snickering and get _out,_ Roxas." he yelled as he dodged another knife (_hell_ Larxene never seemed to run out of knives) and landed with his Keyblade sticking out of another Shadow's chest.

_What do you mean...oh._

As he stood up he left Roxas kneeling on the ground. He shuddered as if some great weight (well, it _was_ true) had been lifted off his shoulders.

Roxas stared up at him. He stared back.

"Geez, stop staring at me like that." he cracked a smile. The first _genuine_ smile he had seen on Roxas' face.

"Ro_xas_?" Axel stood up.

"You know, this-is-looking-to-be-a-great-re-un-ion," Sora cut in, parrying Heartless blows (and _still_ the damn _knives_) with every syllable, "but-ser-ious-ly-we-have-to-go-_now!_" he screamed to the Organization in general. Mercifully they all froze, stunned.

"Well, sure, why didn't you say _so_, dude?" Xigbar sighed belatedly. "We can always kill you _later_."

Sora rolled his eyes as Xemnas portaled at the entrance.

"Wielder," he said simply.

"You _can_ kill me later but right now, I need _you_ guys to get moving, I didn't bring you back just to fade away _again_ here."

His amber eyes widened (and _now_ Sora started to panic, it was literally _flooding_ Shadows everywhere) as he mouthed "bring us...back..?"

This Organization XIII is just _impossible_, he thought as he flung out his Keyblade, summoning the massive doors of Kingdom Hearts.

"_Roxas_!" he hissed.

His Other Side (was that _really_ necessary, now that he was _free_?) started herding his fellow members out the double doors.

"We'll explain everything _outside_ where we're _safe_. Larxene, _please _stop trying to kill Sora. Hey Lex, help me with this lug Saïx (who got knocked out by his very _own_ claymore)."

It was, at least, heartening to hear the happiness in Roxas' voice, even if he knew it was only drawn from _his_ own memory. The guilt was practically _gone_.

"Sora!" he whirled around (and decapitated a bunch of Shadows in the process) to see his Other standing on the other side of the door, the Organization dusting themselves off behind him against the perpetually twilight sky of Twilight Town.

The Heartless were advancing mercilessly. _Now_ he knew what Riku must've felt.

He ran to the doors and took a deep breath, knowing his fate was sealed.

"Too late! Roxas, close the door!"

His face mirrored utter disbelief. "Are you _crazy_!" he yelled back at him.

Bringing the Organization back _was_ the craziest thing he had ever had the nerve to do. But he _had_ to do it, for his conscience's sake.

"Roxas, please, help me shut the _damn_ door!"

"Sora---"

"Lock it after you close it. I'll lock it from the other side. Then this door'll disappear, and the darkness inside with it." _And, of course, me inside it. The messes I get myself into. _"Please, Roxas."

His Nobody shut his eyes tight as he pushed on the door. "You'll get out, right? They still have to kill you, you know."

Sora grinned as he pulled on the other side. "I'm looking forward to that."

"See you."

----------

He faced backward as he locked the door's Keyhole.

Locked inside Kingdom Hearts.

This was going to be a _long_ day.

----------

Read.

Review.

Flamers, go ahead.

I have to post posters again now.


	6. Step Out

**A/N:** It's me again. Chapter 6 here. Sadly, term starts on Tuesday. -sighs- Chapters will probably get posted weekly or even bimonthly. Call me lazy or anything but I take school _really_ seriously (so forget the times I wasted a whole afternoon _doodling_ on paper when I should've been listening to the teach). Don't get me wrong, I love Sora, I really do... but I made him _that_ angry at the whole world because he's so...so _unnaturally happy._ I think he feels much more differently on the inside than what he's showing on the outside. You guys remember the companion fic I mentioned? Yes, it's up already, and you'll know it's a companion fic 'coz it's obvious. Oh yeah, I'm still stuck with the posters. Read on...

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer: **Kingdom Hearts won't be mine until midnight tomorrow. So go away and leave me be.

**VI: S_t_e**p** O**_u_**t**

Riku's eyes snapped open. He sat up, drained, as he stared out his window into Destiny Islands' night sky. His Keyblade flashed to life on his comforter, the Heartless Keychain flashing in the moonlight.

Kingdom Hearts had been disturbed this very night.

-----------

_Toc._

_Toc._

The pen in her hand slipped, creating a huge jagged line in her diary where the date should've been. She silently (of course, being the demure girl she was) cursed as another piece of rock (she supposed it _was_ a rock) bounced against her window. Kairi bit her lip as she slipped the notebook under her mattress and (_toc_) turned off her bedside (plastered over with stickers) lamp, plunging her room into partial darkness.

"Stupid _rabid_ fangirls," she muttered as she climbed back into her bed. Riku's groupies had taken to keeping her awake with their _insane_ marathon pebble-throwing sessions. They _really_ did act like immature ten-year-olds.

_Toc._

"Go away," she shouted, muffling her voice with a well-placed pillow (although she _knew_ the fangirls would stop right around three in the morning--really the _lengths_ they would go to).

_Toc._

_"Kairi! Open up!"_

She was _so _irritated (and _so _groggy) that she was imagining Sora was calling out her name.

_Sora_. His forlorn face still haunted her dreams.

_Toc._

She shut her eyes tight, but every pebble jolted her awake.

_Toc._

"That's _it_!" she huffed as she sat up and threw her covers back. She was going to give, no, _throw_ those girls a piece of her mind (the one that had swear words written all over it.)

_Toc._

She flung the windows open, half expecting to get a pebble in the face. Instead, Roxas fell down, facefirst, into her room.

"You are _so_ dead," she muttered, staring down at the boy, who was now muttering something along the lines of 'girls' and 'barging in'. He stood up, brushed off (highly imaginary) dust off his shoulders and grinned.

_(He grins so much like Sora)_

"Thank _you_ very much for inviting me in," he said dryly. "Now, Kairi, let Naminé go."

"What on _earth_ do you think you're saying? And where the _hell_ is _Sora_? How'd you two get---"

He put a finger to his lips. "Naminé, come on. We're going back." He prodded Kairi's forehead.

"Ro_xas_!"

"_Roxas._"

She gave a startled squeak as she fell backwards, leaving her Nobody standing in her place.

_What's going ON!_ she wanted to scream (which was highly unpractical, considering she would wake up the entire Island if she did just _that_) as she looked up at the two figures silhouetted by moonlight.

Naminé shrugged as she helped Kairi up. Then she stared, wonderingly, at her reflection at the mirror hanging behind Kairi's bedroom door.

"Is this...real?" she asked weakly to the room in general.

"Let's go, Nam," Roxas offered his hand to the blond-haired girl. "Later, Kai. Thanks for keeping her safe."

She watched, bewildered, stunned beyond comprehension, as half of her soul grasped Roxas' hand in her pale one, and they both vanished in jagged strands of darkness, before _she_ herself fell into darkness' embrace.

----------

Riku looked around nervously. Kairi's grandmother _still_ hadn't come back with that tea she was supposed to be making. Speaking of tea, who would have, of all things, _tea_ in the morning. He shifted uncomfortably on the overstuffed sofa he was sitting on. It really _was_ hard to believe this was the _mayor's_ house.

"Oh, good morning, Riku," he looked over his shoulder at Kairi, who was coming down the stairs.

"Are-are you okay now?" Riku climbed to her side, noticing how she clutched the railing for support.

She nodded in response but clung heavily to Riku's arm regardless. "Let's go. We're going to be late."

Kairi had been taken ill about a week earlier, when her grandmother (told to him over tea, of course) found her slumped on the floor unconscious. She had been running a dangerously high fever and had been lethargic, sleeping almost the whole day. Riku stayed by her side whenever he had free time (between academics and co-curricular things _that_ was not a whole lot of time) until late at night, when her father would come in and ask him whether he would like to stay the night, whereas Riku, being just _Riku_, would decline and walk back home and dream of Kairi anyway.

She slowly got better, and she woke up yesterday, but she was still unusually quiet.

"There you are." Her grandmother was back from the kitchen. "Kairi, dear, are you sure you're well enough to go back to school?"

She managed a weak smile. "Ready as I'll ever be."

Her father, the Mayor of Destiny Islands (a large, _imposing_ man) appeared from behind her grandmother, clutching a steaming mug. "That kid's tough, Ma. No bug can get her down."

"Thanks, Dad."

"Young man (Riku's heart sped up, it _always _did when he was being spoken to by _Kairi's_ father), we appreciate you looking out for my little girl (at which Kairi pouted at her father)," he took a sip, "so see to it that she gets to the Academy in one piece."

"_Dad_, I'm not _that_ sick."

"Uh, yes sir."

Kairi laughed. "Thanks, Riku, for coming here and checking up on me," she said, staring up at him (and, as predicted, making him blush) and smiling even more.

"What are friends for?" he coughed out.

"Sorry if you caught my bug," she grinned as she pulled him out of the house, lethargy gone as the last night star winked out.

----------

He stole another glance at her as they walked to the Academy. She was still quiet.

"What's on your mind?"

She shrugged. "Nobody."

"What do you mean, nobody?" he asked again as they crossed the Academy's threshold (oblivious to the glares of various people).

"My Nobody's gone."

Riku stared at her.

She stopped walking. "I didn't catch a bug. It's Naminé. She's gone."

"_Gone_?" That made him stop too. He remembered the night he was jolted awake by his Keyblade.

"Roxas came and took her."

"Roxas." He winced at the memory of that name.

"_Riku_!"

His breath went out of him in a sudden burst (in short, he got the wind knocked out of him) by something, no, _someone_ colliding hard and _fast_ with his chest.

"Riku, it's so nice to finally be able to _hug_ you," a blonde-haired girl squealed against his chest, wrapping her arms tighter.

"Naminé, you're suffocating him," the boy next to her said, folding his arms and grinning amusedly at the both of them.

_Speak of the devil._ Maybe he was just dreaming all of this. The crushing sensation in his chest sadly told him that _this_ was no dream. "Naminé, _geroff me_."

"Oh!" She immediately let him go. "Sorry. Got kinda... carried away."

"Naminé?" Kairi half-screamed her Nobody's name (which effectively made the whole quad stare at her). "Ro_xas_!"

The bell rung.

"Bother." Roxas said as the bell tolled the start of classes. "This school better _not_ have independent studies." He went together with Naminé to what he supposed was their first class.

Riku sighed as he watched the two vanish into the crowd and turned to Kairi. "Let's go. Someone can explain later."

----------

Kairi tapped her foot impatiently as she kept stealing glances at the wall clock, longing for the moment it would ring and announce the end of _this_ period (Lifestream Physics, she _hated_ physics). Why? Next period was homeroom, and from the scribbled note Roxas bounced off her head last period (Worlds' Literature) she had the same homeroom schedule with the both of them.

"Come on, _ring_, somebody has a _lot_ of explaining to do," she muttered under her breath, watching the professor write something (or was it _draw_?) in her trademark unreadable handwriting (_how_ was she supposed to pass the subject when she couldn't even _read_ the lecture?).

She _did_ pass a note back to Roxas, but he was being eyed by the teacher, being a new student and all. When he tried to pass the note back she shook her head frantically (and _that_ earned her a sharp "Do you think my class is boring?" lecture).

The bell rung. She fought back the urge to whoop as she hastily gathered her things and threw them haphazardly in her bag.

"Kai!" Selphie, her best friend, called to her in the corridor. "What's the rush?" she peered up at Kairi, those brown eyes scrutinizing her face.

"Uhhh," she grimaced. She couldn't tell Selphie that _yes_, there were two new students in homeroom, and they held half of Sora's soul and hers, and---she'd never believe it. "I heard there's some transferees, and that we share homeroom."

Selphie clapped her hands excitedly (the very image of an Energizer Bunny) at the prospect of new people on the Dance Commitee.

"Oh, goody, we could use new blood around here..."

"New blood...?" She arched an eyebrow as they entered the classroom. "Where'd you get _that_?"

Selphie was already shaking hands with Naminé, who looked _quite_ disconcerted at the mere _idea_ of a dance, let alone being on a dance _commitee_.

"I'm Selphie Tilmitt!" she was saying energetically (like she said, _Energizer Bunny_), smile growing wider with each passing second.

"N-Naminé...Dalmasca," the blonde girl glanced at Kairi nervously.

"You, like, have the same surname as Kairi here!" she exclaimed (and drawing the attention of every person in the room to herself in the process), staring at Kairi and Naminé alternately. "And... Naminé, you're like Kairi gone blond...! Are you guys identical twins or something?"

"Oh, ignore her, she's kinda on a sugar rush right now," Kairi said hastily, seeing her Nobody (she _was_ still her Nobody, after all) was squirming uncomfortably under Selphie's scrutinizing. "Haven't I already told you, Selph, Naminé's a cousin of mine."

At which Naminé's eyes widened and her mouth shaped itself into a small 'o'.

"Ahhh... cousins, that explains it..."

"Well then, you should see Roxas," Naminé said offhandedly, averting her gaze. "He's a dead ringer for Sora."

_Don't_ use the words 'dead' and 'Sora' in the same _sentence_, she seethed inwardly, narrowing her eyes at her 'cousin', who looked like she had just bitten into an unripe paopu fruit.

"_Yes_, Roxas looks like Sora gone blonde," Kairi agreed in a voice too hearty for her liking.

"Settle down, Tilmitt, Dalmasca, Dalmasca." She blushed, realizing that their professor was most probably been standing in front for at least five minutes earlier. She sat down hurriedly in the nearest vacant seat.

"Class, I'd like to welcome---_Hikari_, where have you _been_?"

Kairi stared at the front-side door, where a very dishelved Roxas was leaning, panting hard. He had obviously been involved in some scuffle of a sort. Naminé hissed beside her, motioning for him to sit down. Selphie (not to mention the whole class) had fallen quiet, probably _stunned_ by Roxas' features.

"What?" Roxas muttered as he sat down. "Is it 'Annoy Roxas Day' today?"

"As I was saying, I'd like to welcome two new students who transferred from Twilight Academy." Miss Fujhin flipped the clipboard she was holding open and traced her pen down the length of the paper. "Come up in front, please, Roxas Hikari and Naminé Dalmasca."

Naminé looked like she had frozen in her seat. Roxas whispered something (and Naminé bither lip before whispering something back) in her ear before the both of them got up and walked down in front of the blackboard. Kairi eyed the both of them; she _was_ going to wring the truth out of them later.

"Uhm, I'm Naminé Dalmasca, and I've just transferred from Twilight Academy," she said (obviously) nervously. Kairi rolled her eyes, she was just _repeating _what Miss Fujhin said a while ago.

"Yeah, as Miss Fujhin said, we're both from Twilight Town. Roxas Hikari." He cut in, scratching his head. "She draws _really_ well, and then.. well, I like to skate."

"Would you _please_ answer the burning question on our minds now," the teacher smiled at the both of them, "are you two _related_ to Kairi Dalmasca and Sora Hikari?"

"Uhhh... I'm one of Kairi's cousins."

"Me? One of Sora's. Maybe that's why people say he looks so _much_ like me."

_Wrong_, Kairi wanted to yell. It was _Roxas _who looked like _Sora_. She watched as the pair made their way back to their seats and Miss Fujhin took to the front of the board again. She bounced the note she had carefully prepared off Roxas' head.

"Now, class, the Annual Halloween Dance is only about a month from now, and Miss Tilmitt---"

Roxas unfolded the crumpled ball and shot a glance at her.

"Attendance is not required.. if you don't want to go, it's perfectly fine, but think of the party you'll be missing---"

Kairi stifled a giggle. Coming from a teacher who was _so _boring, talk of what they would _miss _at a party was _unbelievable_ (hey, at least _she_ stifled her giggle, some of the people inside the room laughed out loud). She caught the paper ball Naminé thrust at her under the pretense of searching for a dropped pencil on the ground.

_I told you, we don't know _anything, _Kai. Ask _Naminé, _she was the one who woke up first._

She slipped another torn page of notebook on the top of Naminé's armchair table, who looked at her, then shot a scorching look at Roxas.

"Starts at around six and ends at one in the morning... The only requirements are a guardian's permission and that _you_ come in costume (at which a collective groan rose from the class, whether from joy or annoyance, nobody knew). There _is_ a Bssest Costume award, with a prize of---"

Kairi stared down at Naminé's neat, round letters. _Sorry, Kairi, but memories are _hard_ to come by, or, in short, WE DON'T REMEMBER ANYTHING. You can pester Roxie more later. And ignore him just now, he's a bit cranky since girls were all over him in the corridors._

She stifled another giggle. _Roxie? Ah, so _that's_ why he looks like he just came out of a prizefight,_ she scribbled and passed the note back.

Roxas' face darkened as he read the note over her shoulder.

Kairi passed another note (fervently hoping for the right reply), this time to Roxas.

"---One thousand munny."

She almost let the crumpled ball of notebook paper miss her grasp as she felt her mouth fall open. One thousand was a _lot_ of munny (apparently so, whispers had broked all over the classroom) for a teenager.

_I can't feel him, Kairi, it's not like we're connected or something anyway. Sorry._ The last word was written jaggedly, like the hand that wrote the word was shaking _badly_. She looked at Roxas, hoping to catch his eye. It looked suspiciously like he was _avoiding_ her gaze vigilantly, and Naminé was doing the same. She wanted to scream.

"Dalmasca, Dalmasca, Hikari," Miss Fujhin said sharply. "Are you listening?"

"Yes, ma'am, " Kairi said tonelessly, slipping Roxas' note into her skirt pocket. She slumped back in her chair, her hope of finding Sora vanishing with the two Nobodies' missing memories.

_----------_

Chapter Six done. Updates will most probably be weekly, so I'm expecting reviews , both positive (I love you guys...free cookies!) nd negative (flamers... don't worry, I still love you, but the cookies will cost you dearly), _lots_ of them. -Laughs evilly-

Those guys who want more of the Nobodies' side of this story (more Organization XIII! Yayness!), check out the companion fic subtitled Nobody's Perfect. Tell me if you like my idea... _please_.

Those who like Roxas and Naminé pairings... read that oneshot I made, _Alive_. Review and tell me if I am delusional when I say that I can write a good oneshot.

Thanks. See you around.


	7. Routine

**A/N:** Finally! I _told_ you updates would be weekly, natch. Anyway, I'm still deciding whether to put up only one or two chapters per week. I sometimes write fast. So anyway, if you want to hear the Nobodies' side of the story read the companion fic, Nobody's Perfect.

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer: **Oh, the deal didn't go through. Stupid bouncing check, I _told_ them to make sure no one would... oh, Kingdom Hearts is still Tetsuya Nomura's.

**VII: R**_ou_**t**i**_n_**e

"So... let me get this straight," Kairi said over her glass of paopu juice. "Roxas. You just kind of _woke up_ with Sora gone."

"Why do I _always_ have to repeat myself?" Roxas rolled his eyes, at which Naminé shot him a glare. He quickly clamped his mouth shut.

"_Then_ you find a place there (he nodded) and _then_ you catch a Gummi Ship here to take Naminé (he nodded again). You got a job as a..."

"I _told_ you, called King Mickey and told him, well, what happened."

"And _then_..."

"Kai, please. You three are just repeating yourselves," Riku sighed as he stirred his iced tea (no longer iced, the _time_ it took them to explain). It was _pretty _clear that the two already told them everything they remembered. "So Sora did something to separate himself and Roxas, and Roxas pulled Naminé out of Kairi. Now you two live in Twilight Town."

"_That_ was what I had been trying to say for the last fifteen minutes, Riku," Roxas said loudly, his blue eyes reflecting acute irritation (oh, was it _really_ irritation? As far as he knew Nobodies _could not _feel any emotion whatsoever).

"And you have _absolutely_ no idea where Sora is?" Kairi asked, the hope in her voice almost too painful to bear.

"Sorry, but no."

Naminé bowed her head, apparently lost in the depths of her glass of sparkling grape juice.

"Well, I guess we really just have to keep looking for him..." he shook his silver bangs out of his eyes, catching what he thought was a slight nod of Naminé's directed at Roxas. _Must've been my imagination_, he thought.

"That was a bit... selfish of Sora, to go and leave just like that," she suddenly spoke up, her cerulean orbs staring straight into his aquamarine eyes. "He should've---"

"Should've. We're not him, so why even bother thinking what he should've done?" Kairi cut across her curtly (which was a _very_ far cry from what she was feeling earlier).

Naminé bit her lip. "Uh, Kai, that's a bit too--"

"Oh, I just remembered, I have to talk with my Spellcasting teach," Riku stared as the redhead stood up abruptly and walked away without another word.

"Yay. Somebody _else_ hates Sora," Roxas muttered.

"What was that?" Riku asked. "Somebody _else_?"

For some reason Naminé shot Roxas another look. "Ignore him, he was kinda caught up in the whole walk-out thing."

"Oh."

He stared at the door where Kairi had walked (more like stormed) through earlier. She _really_ took Sora leaving and breaking their promise _hard_; Kairi was a girl who liked promises _kept_. She'd most likely throttle Sora on sight.

----------

_Throttle him_.

Yes, that's what'll she do when she sees him. While she was not known for being so _violent_ she will most likely _throttle_ Sora. She _loved_ him, and she knew he loved her, so _why_ would he go off like that? Saving the world against saving your _love_...!

_Throttle him_.

Or maybe he has another _girl_. Not so impossible, considering how Sora's spent almost three years of his life wandering around some random world (some of which no Gummi Ship could possibly reach in the near future).

_Throttle him._

She brushed her hair and stared at herself in the mirror. She was usually perky in the mornings, but after a highly unusual dream last night, she... was kinda tired. Dreaming of Sora was something normal to her now. This particular dream had Roxas and Naminé in it too.

Sometimes she had the feeling that Roxas and Naminé were hiding something. Well, she didn't try to ask, because some of the things they related were too...horrifying to digest. Like how DiZ rivaled them for being _heartless_. (She figured the two _hated_ DiZ badly from the way they said his _name_) That and what happened in this... Castle Oblivion. She shuddered. _Stop thinking about _that.

The two Nobodies were fitting in perfectly. Well, she figured that from the legions of admirers the two had acquired. Naminé had even scored an invite to try out for the cheerleading team (of which she was a member), and, Kairi suspected, she would pass with flying colors if she accepted.

Well, Naminé and Selphie accompanied her around most of the time, they had almost every class together. Having Naminé meant having Roxas around, too, but lately, he had been hanging out with Riku and the other boys.

She found _that_ a relief. Seeing Roxas was like a reminder that _Sora_ was gone. She missed him. She really did. But life went on; and she was slowly getting used to going around without Sora's presence. It was slowly getting like the time Naminé broke apart Sora's memories (She _still_ hadn't gotten over that and the _fact_ that Naminé manipulates memories); she was slowly forgetting him. _No_, she wasn't forgetting him! She was just...moving on.

And _that_ scared her the most.

----------

"I was going to wait for Naminé.. we go home together."

There was _something_ in Roxas' voice that tipped him off. He was hiding something.

"_Home_...?"

He watched as the blonde scratched his head. "Yeah, we catch the Gummi ship to Twilight together."

"Why not study in Twilight Academy?" he asked.

"Uhhh... We... we're drawn here, you know, being Sora and Kairi's Nobodies and everything..."

"But the Gummi Ship takes about an hour to get to Twilight, Roxas."

"Time management?"

Riku stopped walking and turned to him. He smiled. "You portal out, don't you?"

"Us? Uh, portal...?"

"I wielded darkness once, you know. I know how the Corridors work."

Roxas sighed. "Yeah. People panic when you appear out of nowhere, so me and Nam agreed on a hidden place to portal out. It's basic Organization rules."

Something twinged in Riku's memory. Organization XIII. _Sora's Nobody_.

_We have to convert Roxas into data and return him to Sora._

_Poor thing._

"Uh, Roxas? Sorry for...well... you know, taking you down and---"

"I know you're sorry, Riku. You just did what you had to do to save a friend." he looked away.

"And I'm going to save him _again_. The trouble _Sora_ gets into..."

"What do you mean?"

"Where's Sora?"

Roxas grinned. "Funny, I was the one asking last time. I told you, I don't remember."

Riku smiled back. "You're hiding something. Come on, as long as he's not dead, I swear I won't kill you, whatever reason you have for hiding him."

Cerulean peered up into aquamarine. "Has anyone even _succeeded _in lying to you?"

"No. No one."

"Bother. Fine. Just don't tell Kairi, Sora made me promise that."

"You're lying again."

"Okay, he didn't _exactly_ make me promise... it's kinda what he wanted all the same."

"What shouldn't I tell Kairi?"

"One: Sora not only separated from me, but he brought back Organization XIII."

Riku jerked back involuntarily; he _resurrected_ Organization XIII! What was Sora _thinking_? "I'm presuming there's a two."

"Two: He's locked inside Kingdom Hearts." Roxas laughed weakly.

"You have a _lot_ of explaining to do, Roxas Hikari."

----------

The beach was _always_ a welcome sight. Especially inside Kingdom Hearts.

"_Finally_!" he yelled as he ran down to the water. Heartless didn't dare tread on Nobody territory (or so he thought, from Roxas' memories, this was where he and Xemnas met face to face); that was a relief, he was _tired_ from fighting Heartless anyway.

He grinned as he dabbled a hand in the water. _At least the waves sound the same_. On said waves light shimmered.

He looked up as _his_ door to the light (as Key to Kingdom Hearts _and_ Wielder of light, there was a lot of things he could do here.) opened.

Laughing out loud he ran into the water.

----------

_That_ was the shortest chapter I had ever written. It's kind of like an interlude of sorts; a major event is in the next chapter, see? Speaking of next chapter, as in Nobody's Perfect, I'm not posting until I have reached a certain number of reviews. Call me evil, but hey, a writer needs her critics (or something like that). Flamers, here's the welcome mat.

Is Sora _really_ going to get out of Kingdom Hearts? Review and you'll find out soon enough. Next chapter's about the Halloween Dance and is titled "Masquerade". Bit tragic. though.

Love you all! See you!


	8. Masquerade

**A/N: **It's me again! _O_kay, I give up. I'm gonna post this story whether you guys like it or not. So there. And no, I do _not_ hate Sora.

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer** Stupid, stupid bouncing check. I _told_ him pyramiding won't work. So Kingdom Hearts _still_ isn't mine.

**VIII: M**_asq_**u**_er_**a**d**_e_**

**_"_**Sel_phie_! Do you want to go to this dance or not!"

"I'm _coming_ Vaan! Wait a sec!"

"Sorry, Kai," Selphie's older brother ran a hand through his hair exasperatedly. "Seconds to my sister are _years_ to normal people."

"I _heard_ that!"

Kairi giggled. It wasn't really _years_ since she had sat there (well, the _time_ it took Selphie to dress up) on the Arcadias' couch, waiting for Selphie to come down so that Vaan could drive them to the docks to the Destiny Academy ferrying service. She fingered her pearl necklace nervously; she didn't know what to expect at this _dance_, since this was her first time at one.

"Anyway," he said abruptly. "Why're you going as a prin_cess_? So cliché, Kairi."

"That's exactly my point, you see." She smoothed out her long skirt. "Everyone else thinks princesses are _so_ common that nobody will even _dare_ to wear one, so I'm the only princess at the dance!"

"You _thought _of that all by yourself..? Very _good_!" he said sarcastically, grinning at her. She threw a pillow at him and laughed. Vaan was known for being the complete opposite of his sister; he was _totally_ laid-back when it came to Island-wide events like this. But his calm nature belied a _ferocious_ fighter; he was bestowed the title of Paladin when he turned _fifteen _(fifteen? _that_ was legendary in itself) and was one of the head Defenders during the Heartless invasion. _And_ he was a local heartthrob.

"Hey, no smearing my best friend's makeup!"

"_Wow_, Selph, that's a record, it only took you about half a day to finish primping!"

She watched as Selphie practically _hopped_ (Energizer Bunny! Go!) down the steps towards them. Kairi swore she could see Selphie _quiver_ with excitement.

"So, whaddya think, huh?" She twirled around. "Think I got the history right?"

"Summoner?" Kairi raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah...lookin' for my Guardian!" She twirled around again, her dark blue skirt parting at the slit on the side. "World, here I come!"

"Whoa, whoa, Guardian or anything, _no kissing_, Selphie." Vaan said sternly. "And isn't that supposed to be only knee high? You're showing _way_ too much skin, you'll end up---"

"_Hey_, read my history book, it says on page 327 the skirt's embroidered with star flowers and caught up with a thigh-high divide on the left side. It's what the High Summoner really _wore_. You should be glad I didn't wear her gunner dressphere, you know, the one with the hot pants and..." Selphie trailed off, giggling at the look on her brother's face.

"You know, Selph, that'd look _great_ on you," Kairi smiled widely. "I bet all the guys---"

"_Don't _give her ideas, Kai." Vaan cut in. "Let's go already."

"Because big brother has a _date_, he doesn't wanna be _late_..."

"That's just _hopeless_, Selphie. Cut it out," he said quickly, blushing. "I told you, let's get going already."

"'Coz he asked Ashe out to dinner to_night_...It's a night full of _deliiight..."_

Another pillow came Selphie's way as they followed her brother outside to the car.

----------

Riku sighed. Yes, he seemed to be doing that a lot of times lately.

"Uh.. later." He smiled weakly at the fifteenth girl to ask him to dance. Weren't _guys_ supposed to ask girls to dance? Destiny Islands was a _weird_ place. Not that the costume added anything, no it didn't. (O_kay_ so maybe being dressed as a _prince_ added something to the overall effect.)

"Oh come _on_ Riku, don't be _that_ heartless," Roxas said loudly, punching him on the arm. "That's like the millionth girl you turned down. This is why it's called a _dance_." Naminé nodded enthusiastically beside him, her angel wings bobbing up and down. (And he _had_ to admit, she looked absolutely _angelic_. Blond hair, fair skin, white dress... what more could you ask for?)

"Have I seen _you_ dance with someone?" he asked testily. Roxas grinned even wider.

"Whaat... do you want to dance with _me_?"

"Shut up, Ro_xie_." He glared at the grin on Roxas' face which was seemingly present ever since the dance started fifteen minutes ago. The blonde shrugged and resumed toying with his hood's silver strings. Riku thought _at least_ Sora's Nobody would be a bit more creative, but Roxas had come dressed as... what else? An Organization XIII member. (He was an _Unknown_, or so had he carefully and meticulously explained the moment he saw him.)

It was strange, the two Nobodies. Born of Sora and Kairi. They were just (_honestly_, these were just _thoughts_) a huge _mistake_, someone that was never meant to exist. Yet they were here, enjoying as if they really _felt_ the joy. And Riku had the strangest feeling that Naminé had a _huge_ crush on _him_ (So maybe it wasn't entirely _feeling_; the rumor kind of spread like wildfire one day). He blinked. He had caught Naminé staring at him.

He grinned at her. She blushed and lowered her gaze. _Touché_.

"And I thought you were _shy_," Tidus was saying as he traced little spirals into Yuna's palm. "Why're you dressed as a _genie_...of all things..." (And he couldn't help but notice how Tidus' gaze flicked to the girl's bare waist, was _that_ how really genies look like?)

"It's a costume party. It gives you freedom to somebody _else_, just for one night," she replied softly, watching Tidus play with her hand. "Pirate, huh?"

"Pirates are cool, you know, all that swashbuckling charm. Helps with the ladies." They both laughed. Riku rolled his eyes; if Tidus caught even _one_ glimpse of the pirates cursed by Aztec gold he'd scream and most likely run into the other direction.

"Ri_ku_, you, tell me," Yuna asked him, " Why are _you_ dressed as a prince?"

"Huh?" He shrugged as he tightened his ponytail (What? Princes _always_ have long hair that they tie back.) and brushed hair out of his eyes. "I dunno. Was the only thing I had in my closet (True, _so_ true)."

"You're lucky nobody else was dressed like _that_, ya?" Wakka added.

"Maybe they thought being a prince was so common that no-one wanted to be one."

"Hmm... got a point there, man." the orange-haired teen nodded to himself.

"Hey, Lulu, the candle's goin' out," Naminé pointed out, addressing the girl next to Wakka, who was dressed as a vampire (which, Riku thought, suited her), dressed in all black.

"Wind picking up," Lulu sighed before waving a hand, strengthening the candle's struggling flame. She was known in the Academy for being a Level 6 Black Mage at fourteen. She was only 2 levels more from being considered a sorceress (which was a good thing---History said that sorceresses were either executed or excommunicated from general public). _And_ she was the only one Wakka had the guts to ask to the dance. "I hope it won't rain..."

"Oh, it won't," Roxas said confidently, draining his wineglass (which was filled with _slightly_ spiked punch) and setting it down on the tablecloth with a dull _thunk_.

"Why not?"

"Look up."

Everyone at their table stared at the shower of brightly burning meteors tracing a path across the night sky. Soon everyone _else_ had noticed the meteor shower.

"Oooh, falling stars!"

"So many _wishes_!"

Riku shook his head. Stars didn't sit _too _well with his memory. Take the paopu fruit, for example. He looked around the crowd's upturned faces, searching for the one who made the memory _quite_ unpleasant. Not surprisingly, Kairi and Selphie had shown up _late_. Kairi smiled and waved at them as she and (summoner!) Selphie made their way through the tables _while_ staring up at the meteor shower (girls and their _amazing_ powers of perception. Go figure.).

His mouth fell open as he realized what the redhead had dressed as. A princess.

_His princess..._

----------

Sora shook his head violently _and_ tried to exhale water at the same time. _Why_ in the world did Kingdom Hearts _always _choose the ocean as a dumping (for the lack of a better word) site? He watched as additional meteors from the heart of all worlds splash into the water around him. As he gazed around he saw where Kingdom Hearts _dumped_ him.

Of all the places. _Destiny Islands_. And not just the Main Island or the South Island.

The one island where all of this _madness_ began.

He sighed and almost went under the waves (_you _try sighing and treading water at the same time) if not for the Sorcerer Nobody who held him steady with one of its magic cubes. He blinked.

"Wha---"

More and more Nobodies emerged from portals scattered all over the waves, each one jostling each other, it seemed, to _help _him. Nobodies weren't exactly _known_ for their hospitality.

_Just to make sure_, he thought. He summoned his Keyblade, and, unsurprisingly, the Nobodies vanished. As the _hug_e key (what? it essentially _was_ one) flared to life in one outstretched hand he remembered something.

_Oh joy_. He had never sealed his _own_ home world's Keyhole. His forehead wrinkled at the thought. How could he have been so _stupid_? Well, considering the fact that he was distracted with saving the known universe at said moment in time, it _might _be understandable. But no. He was instructed by a certain _King_ never to endanger a princess of heart.

What the heck. Even if King Mickey didn't send him the stupid letter he'd protect Kairi with his life.

Said in stupid letter to seal any miscreant Keyholes out there. But he remembered _this_ particular Keyhole was guarded by a Darkside (and even _Ansem _favored the place as a hangout, him and his black coat...waiiit, this is _Xehanort _we're talking about) and a whole _lot_ of darkness.

He resigned to the fact that sooner or later he'd have to seal the Keyhole in the one place he _knew_ he'd break down. He started swimming towards the island, forcing his exhausted legs to propel him forward, thinking of how he would be able to even _hit_ a Heartless in his state.

"_Drive_!" he half-shouted into the night sky, laughing, his clothes glowing silver as he drove into Final Form. (Thank _you_ Flora, Fauna and Merryweather) Why hadn't he thought of that earlier? Gliding was _so_ much better than swimming. As he sped along the ocean waves (more like skimming), those orbs of light circling around his hair, he smiled at a_ random _thought.

_This would make a great Halloween costume_.

----------

"Go!"

Cerulean blue eyes gazed up at her fearfully, her pale hands clutching her wineglass so hard her knuckles were white. "But... so many _people_..."

Kairi shook her head exasperatedly. "_So_?"

"But you're a people person..."

"And that changes...?"

"Seriously, Naminé can _sing?_" Roxas asked for the third time, staring incredously at both girls. (at which Naminé shot him a glare.) "Let's hear it!"

"B-but.. I've never even _spoken_ in front of more that thirteen people, Kai..."

She smiled at her Nobody as she smoothed her skirts. Naminé was something like her complete opposite when it came to socializing with other people. "The principal's waiting over _there_," she said, pointing somewhere beside the makeshift stage. "Come _on_, Nam... it's just one song..."

"Yeah, Naminé, I want to hear you sing!" Riku grinned (and, Kairi noticed, the smile was _stunning_) as he leaned towards the blonde. She sighed resignedly as she slowly stood up and made her way to the stage, the other students (so mostly the male population) turning their heads to look at the _angel _walking past them.

Kairi winced as the microphone screeched to life in the principal's hands. "Ladies and gentlemen, I present Naminé Dalmasca."

Roxas catcalled, clapping his hands, his hood bouncing up and down (_seriously_, he should've thought of a better costume. What he was wearing now certainly didn't qualify as one because he was _actually_ a member of the Organization) as the lights dimmed, the Materia glowing inside the lamps exuding a soft light (color depended on the lamps, violet, yellow, peach, you name it, they have it.)

She watched as Naminé squinted a bit in the spotlight's glare, the mike shaking in her hands. She mentally cheered her on, like the way she once usually talked with her Nobody.

_Once_. She shivered involuntarily as she realized something. She had not thought of a certain Keyblade Wielder this day. Or for the past few days, either. Not even _once_. And she realized she didn't _care_.

"_I need more affection than you know..." _Naminé had started to sing. It was a slow song, and people were starting to come down to the dance floor (and quite a few girls glanced hopefully at Riku).

Riku, for his part, looked a bit scared.

"What are you scared of?" she asked, peering into his face. The expression on his face was quite funny.

"I...I've never slow-danced before." He said in one breath, his face turning red.

Kairi giggled uncontrollably; the great Riku, varsity player, advanced student, Council President, didn't know how to _slow dance_?

"Stop it," Riku pouted. Which made her laugh even more.

She didn't know what came over her. Maybe it was the moment. Maybe it was the song. Or maybe she didn't like to be alone anymore. She stopped laughing and held out a hand to the boy in front of her, seeing the surprise reflected in his aquamarine pools.

"K-kai?"

"C'mon. You're not a prince if you can't dance, Riku."

"But, Kairi, are you _sure_ about... you know?" He stammered, clearly shocked. Kairi knew that _he_ knew she was...attached to Sora, and he respected their closeness. "This is like... cheating or something."

"It's just a lesson, Riku," She said loudly. "I want to teach you _how_ to dance. You'd look kinda pathetic with girls if you don't know how. _And_ so what if I dance with you? It's not like I'm committed to _him_ or something..." (_No_, she wasn't, she prided herself on the fact the she _never_ broke promises.)

He shrugged, flipping his cloak over his shoulder. "Aren't guys supposed to ask girls to dance, not the other way around?"

"You're admitting you're a _girl_?" She started giggling again as Riku took her outstretched hand. (notice how scarlet rushed up Riku's cheeks--and how scarlet rushed up his fangirls' cheeks in anger) "I'll teach you how to dance. It's kinda like how the Lion and the Angel met, remember?" she said, pulling Riku into the clearing (it _was_ in the middle of the island forest) that served as a makeshift dance floor.

"Hey, I want a dance lesson, not a history one." He smiled back as he put his free hand onto her waist, the other gripping her hand tightly. (And _now_--- notice how scarlet rushes up _Kairi's_ cheeks.) "Don't say I didn't warn ya, _princess_."

She looked up into his eyes, and noticed how they _bored_ into her own. It was unnerving yet comforting at the same time. Riku always made her feel like that, even when they were with Sora. She placed a hand on his shoulder and pouted at him.

"Oh, _prince_," she said sarcastically. "Shut up and dance."

"_My sanctuary my sanctuary yeah.._

_Where fears and lies melt away..."_

----------

"_Wish I could prove I love you _

_But does that mean I have to walk on water.."_

Sora's head snapped up. He had just imagined hearing Kairi's voice floating on the air. Sometimes tiredness can make you hallucinate like that. Why, just a few minutes (okay, hours, more like) he had just heard _Naminé _sing.

"_What I meant when I said no_

_I don't think life is quite that simple."_

He glided along the path that cut through the Island's forest, humming along the imaginary tune in his head, the Oathkeeper and Kingdom Key floating behind him. He was actually _happy_ he was hallucinating hearing Kairi sing. He was relishing her beautiful singing voice as he closed his eyes, floating along to where he remembered the beach was.

_"You don't hear me say_

_Please oh baby, don't go..."_

He laughed. Who _knows_ where that song was buried in his memory. He didn't even remember hearing it before. Or maybe he just needed some sleep. That last Neoshadow could've done him in if it had the chance to strike before he ran through the door to the light. Yes, sleeping _was_ the first thing he was going to do. After sealing the Keyhole, he'd go straight to the Castle That Never Was, unlock some random room and _sleep_ until he couldn't stand keeping his eyes closed anymore. _Then_ he'd think on what he had _done_ (and get a splitting headache in the process) and _how_ he did it. And if he's _ever_ going to come back _home._ That gave him a headache in itself. He tiredly slashed the Soldier that jumped out in front of him from the dense shrubbery on the sides of the path, the Oathkeeper twirling madly under his fingers.

_Music_.

He instantly woke up, staring at the lanterns strewn in the trees along the grassy path. He _wasn't _hallucinating, he had just _heard_ clear bars of music from somewhere round him. _Lanterns_? As far as he knew no Heartless in Destiny Islands carried lamps. Multicolored paper-covered ones at that.

"_Are confusing me..."_

The more he glided, the louder it got, and people's voices started popping up everywhere. He noticed that the dense shrubbery beside him wasn't just wild plants, it was a _tall_ hedge. His orbs of light started to dance wildly around him as his heart beat faster, remembering that Destiny Academy held a dance every Hallow's Eve (or so Jack told him, Halloween came from _that_), but last time he hadn't been old enough to go (or anyone else, for that matter.) But why the hell hold one _here_?

"_Wish I could prove I love you_

_But does that mean I have to meet your father_

_When we are older--"_

He fought the urge to whoop as he noticed a pair of Defenders walking up the path. If they recognized him... well, he'd have to answer a _lot_ of awkward questions. _And_ face the consequences of leaving his _friends_ and breaking a promise. Yes, he'd rather hide forever than face _that_. Sora quickly jumped and caught foothold in the hedge, vaulting to the top just as the pair walked past. He held his breath, praying that they wouldn't notice the balls of light hovering above his head. (If they were _really_ top-notch Defenders, like Selphie's brother Vaan, in his exhausted state he stood no chance if they mistook him for a Heartless.)

Mercifully they continued on chatting. He sighed with relief as he steadied himself. The hedge, as he suspected, was _very_ thick, more than enough to sit or even _lie_ on. He carefully turned around lest he fall (it _was_ a twenty-foot drop); land was still very solid even if you were floating one inch off it. Heck, even _sitting_ he was floating on the hedge's top.

"_Simple and clean is the way that you make me feel tonight---"_

He almost fell off, recognizing Kairi on the stage. He was grateful that the one spot he picked to eavesdrop was in the corner; anywhere else the hedge was strung with lanterns.

"_It's hard to let go_."

Suddenly he was seized with the urge to jump off and just _run_ to the girl he would have given anything for. His _princess_. (He smiled incredously, she was _dressed_ as a princess) But knowing Kairi, she'd _never_ forgive him for leaving _again._

_Stupid letter_.

_Stupid Wielder's duty._

_Stupid light and darkness_.

He let his gaze wander; with a pang of regret he saw Riku, the platinum hair standing out. _He _told Sora to follow his heart. Trouble was, he didn't know _what_ his heart wanted. His mouth dropped open when he saw Roxas and Naminé sitting together with _his_ friends.

"_Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all_

_Nothing's like before."_

His head started pounding again. Kairi's song suddenly seemed _accusing_. He found himself wishing he hadn't come across this _dance_, because the urge to _scream_ was overwhelming right now. (_And_ the urge to kill a certain mouse-eared King, thank you very much.) He winced slightly, using the Kingdom Key to steady himself.

"_Whatever lies beyond this morning_

_Is a little later on--"_

Breathing hard, he tried to concentrate on leaving as _quietly (_No one, even Olette, who was sitting directly below him, noticed him or the little trails of light his movements left behind) as humanly possible. The headache made thinking straight nearly _impossible_.

"_Nothing's like before."_

The song was down to its instrumentals, and Sora was down to his last reserve of energy. He berated himself for even _thinking_ of tackling a Keyhole in his current condition. He tried to stand up.

_Tried_.

"Oh _shoot_." he muttered as he lost his balance and toppled _inside_ the hedge's boundary. As he fell the music stopped. And he found himself locked in eye contact with Kairi Dalmasca. Her mouth was slightly open as they saw each other for the first time in months.

_Hurt._ That was her expression.

_Then_ he crashed onto the ground, his Final Form saving him from becoming a pile of broken bones. Olette screamed. Then Lenne screamed. Then everyone _else_ screamed.

"_Heartless!"_

He picked himself up and brushed off soil, his eyes frantically scanning for Kairi. The orbs circled him rapidly as he ran towards the stage, where he saw Kairi storm off a few seconds ago. "_KAIRI!"_ He took out his Keyblades, effectively giving him a wide berth through the frantic crowd.

"Defenders! Surround and _attack_!" A cry came from behind him. "Protect the students!"

"I'm _not _a Heartless, _damn it!_" he yelled angrily, emotion giving him newfound strength. "I'm _Sora Hikari_! Leave me _be_! _KAIRI_!"

Kairi Dalmasca had vanished into the night. His heart plummeted to somewhere in the vicinity of his stomach. Strangely enough, he thought he could hear his _antiform_ giggling madly.

"_Kai!_!"

----------

Read. Review. Are cliffies good or bad? And yeah, I'm thinking whether to make this and Nobody's Perfect a joint tragedy or happy ending...

Thanks for reading. Flamers go ahead, the page won't bite. (but Sora will... )


	9. Shattered

**A/N:** I told you, I don't hate Sora... It's just that I want to make him more human, because there's no way in hell somebody could be _that_ happy and _still_ be human. This chapter's short and has no Nobody's Perfect chapter partner. If you don't like hearing Sora cry, then _don't_ read this chapter. Ahhh, the joys of tragedy...

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer: **If I owned Kingdom Hearts I wouldn't be writing here, I'd be making KH3. So there.

**IX: Shattered **

She ran, not caring if her full skirt caught on brambles or branches scattered on the path.

She ran, not caring if people were calling out her name.

She ran, not caring where she went, not caring how she looked with tears streaming down her face.

She ran because she couldn't face him. She wanted to run away from the hurt; from the memory of a broken promise, from the _intention_ of breaking the promise. He left because he _didn't_ care how the people he left behind felt. And as she collapsed on the white sand she _knew_ that he had to, because he was born with the heart of a Wielder.

She could never love him. Duty would _always _ come first. Even if she was a _princess_ of light. She threw her head back and screamed.

"Kairi!"

She sobbed even more. It was _so unfair!_

"Kairi, please, don't cry!" Sora ran up to where she had dropped on the sand. "Please..."

She looked up into the cerulean eyes she had so often dreamed about; that _now_ she had almost forgotten how they sparkled with life. She couldn't help it. She raised her hand and slapped him.

"How _ could_ you! How could you leave just like that! How could you _forget_ what we shared together and just _throw it away_!" she howled, pounding on his chest. She had expected him to recoil and back away, but he didn't. Instead he just stood there, taking her blows like a tree caught in the middle of a violent thunderstorm. _That_ somehow infuriated her more.

"And _now_ you waltz in as if you were just gone yesterday, and that we're all oh-so-_happy_ to see you!" she whirled around, turning her back on him, maddened by his continued silence. She fought the urge to scream again.

"You're just going to stand there! You're not even going to tell me you're _sorry_?"

He bit his lip as he looked to the side, those little orbs of light hovering behind him, their light almost dim, she thought. She stared at him, pleading silently that somehow, this would turn out to be okay, that Sora would just _come home_ and _stay_ with her.

"I---I have no reason to be sorry, Kairi."

She stood there for perhaps ten seconds, stunned by the words that had just come out of the Keyblade Master's trembling mouth. Tears started to cloud her vision again. Her heart sank as he offered no counter-statement, something that would say that _he didn't really mean that_. She realized that the statement had that note of finality so foreign to Sora's personality.

"You don't mean that." She whispered. "You don't, Sora..."

He took a deep breath and reached for her hand. She pulled her hand away and stared at him, her eyes filled with reproachfulness.

"Sealing Keyholes is what I was _born_ to do, Kairi. I had to leave because it was my duty. I don't need to be sorry for that."

She waited for him to say more, but he fell silent, his expression unreadable under the faint light from the stars.

"I _wanted_ to spend the rest of my life with you, Sora. I _still_ do... please, leave the Keyblade be..." she pleaded with him, clasping her hands together as she fervently willed him to say _yes_.

Her heart skipped a beat as he suddenly closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms tightly around her. His heart was pounding madly as she leant her head on his chest, savoring her triumph over the King. He was going back home and _staying_ here, with her, forever.

"Sora..." she said, her voice muffled in his clothing. She gasped as she felt little drops of water fell on her bare shoulder. Sora was crying.

"_I can't._" He said quietly, his arms tightening around her back as more tears started to fall. "You have to understand."

She broke free of his embrace and stared at him unbelievingly.

_She couldn't love him_. She had fallen in love with someone she could never be with, not unless something drastic happened. That feeling _hurt_. A lot.

"_That's_ what you have to say? You _can't_!"

"Listen to me..." he trailed off, his hands gesturing helplessly. He had nothing to say in his defense.

"_Leave me alone_!" she shoved him back as she ran away, ignoring Sora's cries behind her.

----------

Riku stared into the darkness where Destiny Island's Keyhole stood hidden. He thought he had just heard Ansem laugh in his head.

Sora had just literally fallen into their evening. He had no intention of being _seen_, he had just fallen accidentally.

He had really no intention of coming back.

Kairi had stormed off earlier this evening, crying harder than Riku had ever seen her cry before. The mere _sight_ of Sora made sure of that. He could almost _feel_ Kairi's anguish. _And_ he wanted to kill Sora for that. But he knew it wasn't Sora's fault, and he was suddenly glad the Keyblade didn't choose _him_. He _was_ still a Wielder, but he wasn't a Wielder that balanced light(Kairi) and darkness(him). He sighed as he started to walk out, racking his brain as to where Kairi had run off to.

Something collided with him. Yes, that seemed to happen to him a lot lately. His heart jumped when he saw it was the very girl he was searching for.

"_Riku!_" she sobbed into his chest. She was shaking badly all over.

Anger flared in him. How _could_ Sora do this to her? "Shhh... Kai, it's alright, I'm here..." He said soothingly, patting her back awkwardly.

"He--he... ohh he hurt me so much..." she said, her voice breaking as she clutched the front of his shirt, threatening to rip it (and honestly, Riku didn't care, she could tear it into tiny little pieces if she wanted to). He felt her tears soak into the fabric.

Did he dare? Of course. He was _mad_ at Sora, thank you very much. Heart pounding, he enveloped the sobbing redhead in his arms, praying that she wouldn't pull away. Of course, she was too distraught to do that. Instead she sobbed even harder.

"Sora's a jerk, Kai. Don't mind him... leave him to whatever he wants." He whispered, stroking her hair. Kairi's sobs had calmed down into whimpers. Riku relished the feel of her leaning against him, forgetting how he usually stayed away from her and Sora's relationship (not that they had one now).

"He doesn't know how much he hurts people when he just _leaves_ them," she whimpered. "He doesn't feel _deeply_... If he did, he wouldn't leave, Riku..."

He continued stroking her hair as he closed his eyes. She only leaned on him more, their breathing heavy.

_A prince and his princess_.

Sora made a little choking noise.

_Sora!_

His eyes snapped open. He had been so absorbed in Kairi's scent that he didn't smell the Wielder's. Kairi started whimpering again.

"Sora?" Guilt was _so_ much of a powerful feeling as he stared at Sora. The brunette was standing stock-still as he processed what was happening. He seemed to deflate right before their very eyes. He drove out of Final Form back into his original black outfit. Which kind of suited the situation. He could see the remorse reflected in his cerulean eyes. "How long have you been standing there?" he asked weakly (and for some reason he clutched Kairi more).

"Long enough." He said in a dangerously quiet voice.

"This isn't what you think it is, Sora."

Sora bit his lip. "I--this is...It's okay. I knew this would happen." his voice cracked, the tears at the edge of his eyes betraying his apparent calm. "This was part of the price I had to pay...I just never thought...you and Kai..."

"This _isn't _what you think!" Riku almost yelled as he released Kairi. "Sora, I'd never come between..."

The expression on his face was almost too hard to bear. He looked as if the world crumbled around him as his mouth worked, but no words came out. Trembling, he summoned the Keyblade, and for a split second Riku thought he'd kill them (or so he heard, Naminé _had_ told them Sora was a force to be reckoned with when he was _mad_). The silver of the Kingdom Key coalesced into the sky blue of the Oathkeeper.

"You took care of her. I'm grateful for that," he choked out, his eyes shut tight as he removed the keychain. Kairi gasped and bit her lip as the thalassa-wrought keychain separated from the Key, returning it to its original brilliant silver. He chucked the star at Riku, who caught it and stared at Sora, mouth hanging open.

"The--the thalassa shell belongs to the holder of the maker's heart...and I guess it's rightfully yours, Riku."

"_Sora_, are you insane? You're giving _my_ keychain away?" Kairi suddenly exclaimed, tears threatening to fall again.

"Please... Kai, Riku." he said pleadingly, a tear tracing a path down his cheek. "I'm sorry for being stupid. I'm sorry for making the biggest mistake in my entire life. I accept this consequence of what I've done."

"Sora, shut it and take this keychain back," Riku said loudly, frightened at the note of emotion in Sora's voice. He never knew Sora could say _anything_ like that.

"Don't be stupid, Riku, if he wants to give my heart away, _fine_." Kairi seethed, clutching his arm.

Sora's eyes widened with the gesture as he let the Keyblade dissolve into specks of light.

Riku glanced at the steely resolve set on Kairi's tear-stained face. He swallowed nervously. At the way things were going, they may never be close friends again. _Yes_, Kairi might become his girlfriend, but he could never risk losing Sora's fiendship. Not after what he had done to pull Riku out of the darkness eclipsing his heart.

"Kairi, it's not his fault---"

"I'm gonna...go," Sora cut in, the quietness of his voice startling them. The Key to Kingdom Hearts spun around and vanished into the night.

The face of the keychain in his hand seemed to smile even wider.

----------

He knelt on the sand and clawed at the grains of whiteness, his tears marring the dunes of perfection. His breath caught in his throat as he continued sobbing on the beach, the sounds of his whimpers blown away by the wind.

He _did_ make the biggest mistake of his entire life. For once, he didn't follow his heart.

And paid the dearest price for it.

Sora Hikari's heart had been shattered, and his spirit had been broken.

Another star winked out of existence in the night sky.

---------

Well? I _told_ you this chapter was sad. And I just kinda noticed, Roxas' theme is like the _complete_ opposite of Sora's. Try listening to the two. This chapter has Roxas' theme as an inspiration, natch. (dodges backhands from Sora's fangirls).

So you know the drill. Read, _REVIEW_ and get a free cookie. Flamers are accepted. Also, I'm still undecided on the ending. Let me hear your views, okay? Thank you.


	10. Replacement

**A/N:** Here's Chapter 10 already. I'm _so_ happy you guys like my story... Oh yeah. Should I put in the summary 'Sora bashing'? Do I dare? uhhh... is there even such a _term_ like that? And _then_ Namiku and Roxiri people out there... well, hi!

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer:**If I owned Kingdom Hearts, obviously, it would have had a different plot. And Axel wouldn't look so much like an anorexic.

Axel: I am _not_ anorexic you frickin' author!

Larxene: Oh yes you are, you're even sexier than _me_! dodges fire wheel

**----------**

**X: Re**_place_**m_en_**t

----------

Kairi stared down at the blob of _something_ the cafeteria called lunch. She bit her lip to keep from laughing at Roxas' incessant muttering under his breath about cafeteria food.

It was lunch break at Destiny Academy, and their group had met (like always) to eat lunch together (and sometimes moan about _why_ the cafeteria liked to torture students like this) at the same table. Though often people openly gawked at their table. Of course the mere fact that Riku sat there with them had merit in itself, some people did double takes whenever they saw her and Naminé sit beside each other, or whenever Roxas and Sora held their random shoot-the-pea-into-the-glass aiming competition. The likenesses were just _unbelievable_. Then add two hyper Energizer bunnies, Tidus and Selphie, a soft-spoken yet iron-willed Yuna, a _very_ good Black Mage (who, well, always wore _black_), Lulu, and an islander with a _very_ islandic accent Wakka... you've got a pretty mixed lunch group.

"Is this tuna or something?" Riku asked aloud as they set their trays on the table, his brows furrowed together. "It's kinda... I don't know... scary to eat..."

"Mmpf...it actually _is_ tuna..."

Naminé rolled her eyes. "Sora, _chew_. Never talk when your mouth is full."

"Mmm_pfff_ Nam _mmpf _sorry." The brunette tried to say as he had just eaten a spoonful of rice. Naminé sighed for a hopeless cause.

It was _amazing_ how bipolar Sora could be. The little incident at the Halloween Dance might as well had never happened. She still ignored him, though, and him her. She couldn't help but be just _mad_ at how he just..._shunted_ the issue away. He was a coward for not talking to her; for not confronting her and Riku.

Speaking of Riku, the Wielder had been, should she say, _distant_ the weeks after the Halloween Dance. He wasn't outright ignoring her; it was in a more subtle way that he had been paying less and less attention to her and more to the blonde girl sitting across her. Now that she thought about it, Riku had sat next to Naminé. Again.

Should she be jealous? _No._ Riku knew full well that her heart belonged to Sora. But after that letter arrived..._that's_ a different story.

"Earth to Kairi! Earth to Kairi!" Tidus made a little beeping noise, waving a paper napkin in front of her.

"Huh?"

Naminé peered at her, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear as she usually did. "Something's _definitely_ wrong with her, " she pronounced loudly. "She's spacing out again."

"And so _Healer_, what do you believe would remedy that?" Riku snickered, poking Naminé at the waist. Kairi's eyebrow tilted upwards at the seemingly random gesture. Riku falling for _Naminé?_ Had the world come crashing down on them?

"Awww, little Nam's got herself a _boyfriend_!" The boy seated at her left teased, dodging the crumpled wad of paper napkin a blushing Naminé threw at him. If possible, Kairi's eyes widened even more. Of all the people, (pshaw! were _Nobodies_ considered people?) why would _Roxas_ say anything like that? She _knew_ Roxas had feelings for Naminé (from what she could see, anyway, screw the fact that they couldn't really _feel_). _Why_ would he hurt himself like that?

He dodged another, slightly larger wad again (aimed by Riku) in her direction, knocking his glass of water onto her skirt. She couldn't help but gasp as the ice-cold water seeped into her clothes and dripped down her legs into her _socks_.

Roxas scratched his head sheepishly. "Of course, I would help wipe the water from you... but seeing where---" he trailed off, going into a silent fit of laughter with Tidus and Wakka.

Kairi couldn't help but grin. "You are _such_ a sick pervert, Roxas. But I would like to repay the favor, so..."

She upended _her_ glass of water over his head, those unbelievably _stubborn_ spikes sticking up. Roxas' mouth hung open in shock as the water trickled down his face onto his white shirt.

"You _should_ thank me I didn't pour water on your..." _Now_ the girls started to laugh.

"Ahh _Kairi_! That stuff's _cold_!"

"And there you have an example of two perfectly mature sixteen-year olds," Lulu said flatly, rolling her eyes. The table erupted in laughter, making everyone's heads turn in their direction. She was too busy laughing at herself and Roxas little 'mishap' to notice Sora was staring at both of them, a forlorn expression etched on his face.

----------

"Sora, hey."

The brunette heaved his backpack higher, resolutely ignoring Riku's calling his name. Riku sighed, sometimes Sora was too stubborn for his own liking. The conversation had started out like every other normal conversation every student had; how the dreaded World's History test turned out (Naminé did _not_ want to talk about that), how Wakka had gotten detention just because he 'accidentally' bounced a blitzball off the Field Battles professor (what? His aim was off), how Yuna _aced_ the Healer's application exams _and_ the theatre auditions on the same day; everyday _normal _things students talk about. Classmates, professors, co-curricular, rumors, relationships...

And _when_ it got to relationships, Sora stopped talking animatedly and clammed up, his face turning pale (he did not _know_ Sora's face was capable of _that_). He was _avoiding_ the issue, not facing it. He exchanged looks with Naminé, who was walking beside him. The blonde held his gaze for a few seconds (her eyes were so _blue_) before shrugging.

"He _has_ to talk sometime. He won't survive his emotions dammed up like that," she reassured him, a serious expression on her face. "His heart would shatter, you know."

Riku raised an eyebrow.

"Of course, silly, not shatter _tangibly _into shards of blood and everything. It'll shatter emotionally, in a way that is almost _impossible_ to repair. Only time can heal a broken heart."

"Cripes, you really _sound_ like a Healer."

"Oh, stop it, Riku." She blushed. Riku smiled. Naminé _was_ beautiful in her own way, different from Kairi's or even Yuna's kind of beauty. She radiated a calmness that Riku had never felt before.

Naminé pursed her lips and her eyebrows furrowed. "But I _have_ to admit, he really _has _to talk." she whispered in his ear before quickening her pace to catch up with Sora. Riku followed suit.

"Sora, stop running away," she was saying, putting a hand on his shoulder. Sora brushed it off (much to the blonde's shock) and turned to face them, his face silhouetted against the sunset sky.

Sora drew a deep breath. "Listen guys, Riku, Naminé..." he spread his hands in front of him. "I'm grateful for what you two are trying to do, but _please_ give me some space, okay? I really don't want to talk about what happened last Halloween, and I'd really appreciate it if you'd stop asking me about it."

The silence that followed was one of the experiences Riku _never_ wanted to repeat in his entire life.

"...okay." Naminé said in a small voice. Riku just nodded, unable to think of anything to reply to Sora's statement.

"We were just trying to help," Naminé ventured, her lip trembling.

"I know, Naminé." Sora said heavily. "I know." He spun on his heels and walked on, presumably, to the house he and Riku shared.

"He's hurting."

"Yeah."

"Where are you headed, anyway?" Riku asked the girl beside him and wondering _why_ exactly he was asking that at the same time.

Naminé looked startled as she looked up into his face, her eyes questioning. "Well, I'm going to the gym for some audition, I suppose..."

"Whaddya mean, I suppose?"

She pouted at no-one in particular. "A couple of days ago some girls came up to me and asked me to try out for the cheerleading squad."

Riku stared at her incredulously. "Do you realize that _never_ in the history of the Academy Cheering Squad did something like _that_ happen? To even just get _invited_ to join you supposedly had to pass through the eye of a needle!"

"They're your fangirls, right?"

He clamped his mouth shut, scarlet rushing up his face.

Naminé laughed softly, a gentle, almost tinkling of bells (_what the hell?_ Riku thought). "I thought _that_ would get you."

"Why you little...!" He resisted the urge to tackle her right then and there. Instead he grabbed her hand and pulled her along. "C'mon, I'll tell you about the 'Survival of the Fittest' thing cheerleaders _always _have.Just don't tell Kai I told you something like this, okay, or she'd kill me."

"Ohhh... Know so much about your fangirls, huh?" she giggled.

"Naminé, stop it...you're kinda sounding like a fangirl yourself."

"But I actually am!" she said sarcastically, beaming up at him.

Riku put on an expression of mock horror. "Run away!" And he _did_ run, looking back at the blonde Nobody following him, the both of them laughing.

Should he feel guilty? _No_. He finally had someone _else_ than Kairi. At least, he _thought_ he had someone other than Kairi. The eve of Halloween had _changed_ his perspective on sweet Kairi, princess of heart.

----------

"Yeah, and did you see the look on his face? Hilarious!"

"Oh, I'd give _anything_ for that to happen again," Kairi panted, out of breath from laughing so hard.

Roxas dabbed at the edges of his eyes as the swing he was sitting on went forward. Kairi followed suit, her black shoes scraping against the pebbled ground.

Sora berated himself mentally for deciding to take this shortcut. How could he be so _stupid_?

He had just pushed away two people who had just wanted to help him. And _now_ he was pulverizing his own shattered heart by watching the girl he loved enjoying with.. with his---

_Replacement_, his Antiform spat. Yes, his Antiform seemed to talk to him very much lately.

It _was_ true. Roxas _had_ already replaced him in almost _every _aspect of his life. His position as goalie on the blitz team was revoked and taken by Roxas; he was redrafted as a reserve (no matter how Tidus tried to explain to him that he was just waiting for term to end). In every class he once had Roxas had taken his seat. Even in Advanced SHM Roxas was the one the professor _always_ picked on. In their lunch group _he_ had to squeeze in; Roxas had taken Sora's usual place next to Kairi.

_And, your place in the princess' heart_.

His Antiform's words rang true in his head. No matter _how_ he tried to supress his Antiform it _always_ kept popping up in the most random of times.

The piece of cement under his foot turned into powder as he crushed it. It reminded him of his heart. He had _so _much wanted to tell Naminé that _nothing_ could break his heart anymore, simply because it already **_was_**. Maybe right _now_ they were thinking that he, Sora, was crazy for just... like, forgetting what _happened_ that All Hallow's Eve.

_No, _he wasn't bipolar.

_No_, he wasn't psychotic.

He could switch emotions just like _that_ because _he_ kept the balance (or something like that, the King had spoken about the subject much too vehemently for him to understand everything) between light and darkness. Abilities like _that_ were essential for staying sane as a Keyblade Master caught between said light and darkness. He wasn't really happy, all wasn't fine and dandy... but no-one cared, because he had already been cast as a _optimistic, happy_ guy. And he _cared_ about how the others felt; he didn't want them to worry over what _he_ was feeling because they already had enough things to deal with. It's like he's becoming the poster boy for _martyrdom_. And _that_ is exactly what being the Wielder of light is all about.

Sacrifice.

_Stupid le---_

He quickly dived down behind the hedge in front of him as Kairi got off the swings and Roxas followed suit.

"I gotta go," he heard Kairi's musical voice say as her footfalls echoed past Sora. "I have cheering practice to go to."

"Oh, the guys who invited Naminé to join..." Roxas commented, following the redhead out of the swing area.

"Yeah, it's quite surprising how she's kinda popular with them... and with the _boys_.."

"See if I care."

"Ohh you _do _because you're blushing!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

"Am _not!_"

And so the pointless conversation continued until the two were out of sight. He sighed. Now Roxas had even replaced him in those pointless conversation he _always_ had with Kairi to while away the time. Now, Sora could've slid down onto the ground and _died_ and they wouldn't even _notice_.

Should he feel angry? _No._ It _was_ his duty to leave after all, it _was_ what he was supposed to do with that _infernal _key. His brow furrowed. His Antiform was the one who said that, _not_ him.

_Are you suure, Soraaa? _The darkness inside his heart said in a sing-song voice.

He sighed as he stood up, dusting soil and leaves from his clothes. Voices _always _seemed to favor his head, whether Roxas' or his Antiform's, and seriously, he was getting _tired_. His Other Side. Now his_ Dark Side_! What the heck, his life started to resemble a very cheesy movie plot!

_And maybe it actually _is_, to Fate_.

"Shut it, antiform," he mumbled as he walked on to the apartment, not noticing his shadow was actually _whistling_.

_The brightest of flames cast the darkest of shadows, Wielder, _his Dark Side giggled.

----------

"One-two-three-_four_..._oh shoot_."

Kairi rolled her eyes; this had been the _fifth_ time this girl had messed up her dance routine. The steps they taught weren't _that_ hard, in fact, they were positively _easy_.

"Oh _man_, aren't there _any_ good recruits this year?" Garnet moaned beside her, putting her head in her hands.

"Don't worry, Dagger (Garnet _always_ liked that nick, and no-one on the squad knew _why_, she didn't even use daggers in Field Battle classes) somewhere out there we'll find someone..." Kairi patted her on the back sympathetically.

"Like _that's_ pretty encouraging," Freya rolled her eyes, gathering her long blonde hair and sticking a pencil through the bun. "We _might_ find one in the next thousand years or so."

"C'mon, be positive or somethin'," Pearl stuck out her tongue at Freya. "Maybe Naminé's good."

"Hmm.. she might be..."

Kairi glanced over to where the blonde was sitting. She looked _really_ pale (which was saying something) and she looked like she was nibbling her nails down to a bloody mess. The things people do when they're nervous.

"_Next!_" She heard Garnet holler, gesturing to the next girl to audition. One more to go and it would be Naminé's turn. Kairi fervently hoped the blonde wouldn't screw up _her_ routine.

"Wait, who's _that_?"

Kairi sighed and rolled her eyes; her squadmates had just reverted to full hottie alert, or whatever they called that.._thing_ they do whenever they see a potential boyfriend. The judging table was cleared in less than ten seconds flat, leaving her and Pearl alone at the table. Judging from their speed, this guy was pretty _ho_t.

"Oh crap, there they go again," Pearl rolled her eyes in imitation of Kairi. Pearl _already_ had a boyfriend, a Jumi like her named Elazul. "_Really!"_

"Pearl, they all can't be _that_ bad. I'm going to go see who it is."

"Suit yourself, Kai. Just hurry up so that we can finish the auditions already." She put her feet up on the desk, spinning her pen between her fingers.

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "You've got a date with Elazul, don't you?"

The silver-haired Jumi choked. "Well, we...uh..."

She snickered and ran towards the source of commotion; a teenager roughly a foot higher than her, wearing a very _black_ combination of turtleneck and sweats. He absentmindedly ran a hand through his silver-blue hair (which covered one side of his face) and suddenly froze when he saw her coming.

"Hey, Nam." She stopped dead in her tracks. Somehow, he looked _familiar_.

---------

Okay. I did that to push the plot along and lift the gloomy mood a _tiny_ bit. Watch out for Antiform, because it's going to play a _major_ role in upcoming chapters. And this fic is kinda (KINDA!) tragic. Why the hell would I entitle it "You Don't Miss It 'Till It's Gone" if someone's not _going_ somewhere?

Poll! Tragedy or happy ending? Tell me guys!

See ya! Might update day after tomorrow or somethin' like that!


	11. A Shadow of a Girl

**A/N: **Here I am! So sorry that I couldn't update earlier, being a student is _hard_, especially when you've only got activities to go to that last up to nine in the evening. So timecheck is now...'bout ten in the evening. I'm thinking about a joint ending with Nobody's Perfect... should I combine the two or just tell the same events from two different perspectives? Ahhh... And a reminder: I do **_not_** hate Sora, I just wanna make him a bit more human. If you wanna flame me, go ahead, let it out, we don't want violent people in the world, right?

**Summary:** It's the little things that hurt the most. Between love and duty is a decision he will regret for the rest of his existence.

**Disclaimer:** Kingdom Hearts ain't mine. Deal with it.

----------

**XI: A S**_h_**a**dow** of _a_ _G_**_ir**l**_

----------

"Hey, Nam," Kairi stopped in her tracks. She had _seen_ this guy before, she just _knew_ it. She just couldn't put her _darn _finger on who he was. She had been feeling that way lately. Sometimes a word, smell or even gesture would trigger an image that would flash in her head. She'd _try_ to remember what the image was, but it was like trying to hold saltwater in your hands... the memory would just trickle away, retreating back into some deep, unknown place in her mind. She'd asked Naminé about this; the blonde had promised to find out as much as she could. Naminé _was_ a memory witch, after all. (She _had_ suspected her Nobody might have something to do with it, but..._why_ would Naminé do such at thing like that? She had nothing to hide, anyway.)

She walked closer to the silver-blue haired teen and peered up into his silver-blue eyes, that _darn_ memory dancing around somewhere deep in her head. She gave up trying to grasp it; if she didn't, she might go insane right there. Instead she stared up at him and said the first thing that came to her mind.

"_Darn_ you're cute."

They burst out laughing. Naminé looked as if her face would crack from the grin she had on.

"Do you _always_ do this to people?" he asked dryly, snickering.

"Yes, to cute guys," Garnet almost gushed. Kairi rolled her eyes. What _had_ infected her squadmates for them to fawn over good-looking men like this? "So Nam...you know Zexy?"

Kairi clamped her mouth shut, keeping her laughter down. _Zexy_? What kind of name was that? Apparently he was thinking the same thing, judging from the way his eyelid twitched. She turned to Naminé, wondering how she came to know _Zexy_.

But the color seemed to drain out of Naminé's face as she looked almost fearfully from her to the others. Her eyebrows drew together. "Zexion's (ahhuh! so _that's_ his real name!)... uh...he's..."

"She's my neighbor." Zexion said loudly.

"Y-Yeah, in Twilight Town," Naminé confirmed in what Kairi thought was a shaky voice.

_Her neighbor? That can't be!_ Kairi thought. Well, Naminé _had_ said that she and Roxas had come to live (well, _exist)_ in Twilight Town after the two of them had separated from her and Sora. _Wait. Anyone could be their neighbor in that case._ But there was this insistent voice in her head that kept screaming about how that cannot possibly be _true_, that cannot _happen_, that Roxas and Naminé didn't _exactly_ live in Twilight Town, whatever the two said.

She shook her head frustratedly. Why was her memory developing holes like this!

"Roxas sent me here just to give you your gym clothes," he continued in a bored voice. "He says that you shouldn't forget things like that because sometimes there's _nobody_ to go and bring things you forget."

At the sound of the word _Nobody_ (she even _knew_ that it had to be capitalized) a memory leapt up from the well that was her mind. She struggled to catch it...

_"So yeah, Sora finished Larxene off," Roxas said offhandedly, glancing at Naminé. _

_Kairi stared at Roxas, shocked. Someone had just _died_, killed by Sora, and his Nobody was just talking about this girl's death like it was nothing at all._

_"Don't look like that, Kai," Naminé smiled. "She didn't exactly die, she just faded away...And she deserved it, you know. She and Marluxia forced me to replace you in Sora's memories, remember?"_

_"Well..." she looked down at her hands, still flustered at the lack of emotion the two were showing._

_"Oh yeah, didn't we tell you, Kairi?" Roxas' voice rang in her ears. "Nobodies can't feel emo---"_

The memory gave one final twirl and dived back into the 'Forgotten Memories' part of her head. Suddenly a thought came to her mind and she spoke it aloud.

"Why didn't he go himself?" she asked aloud, remembering what had happened earlier in the afternoon. "I mean, we were just hanging around the swings earlier, he could've just por---I mean, gone home and given it to you himself." She restrained herself from clamping her hands to her mouth. She had almost said _portalled_ in front of people (except her and Naminé) that would ask a _lot_ of questions about Roxas if she had said he _could_ portal. She glanced at Zexion, whose eyes were squinted in the I'm-thinking-real-hard look that Roxas sometimes had on his own face.

Another memory was coming on---

Naminé tapped her on the shoulder, bringing her out of her trip down the potholed memory lane. Kairi blinked. _What _memory? It was like somebody had flipped the off switch on her erratic remembering. _Remembering WHAT?_ She shrugged it off. The stress from cheerleading auditions were somehow getting to her.

"Roxas is..._fighting_ with Larxene and his best friend again..." Zexion explained in the same bored voice, as if that sort of thing normally happened every day.

Roxas' _best friend?_ Who was _that_ supposed to be? Maybe it was Roxas' best friend in _Twilight Town_...

"Again?" Naminé said nonchalantly (Maybe Roxas really _was_ violent when he wasn't at the Academy; she smiled at the thought), rifling through the clothes Zexion, she supposed, was talking about. "Well, Zex_ion_, thanks for giving me my things, anyway."

----------

"Hi! This is Sora Hikari. You've just dialled my number, but I can't answer the phone right now 'cause there's Shadows all over it. Leave me a message after the beep and I'll try to call you back in a few." _Beep_.

Sora resisted the urge to throw the answering machine at the wall, because (a) it _was_ his only answering machine, and he had just spent hours racking his head for a suitable recording, (b) the mess that it would invariably make would be _so_ much of a chore to clean up, (c) Riku's room _was_ on the other side of the target wall, _that _was enough, (d)-- well, if he went through the entire list he'd end up with a headache. So he pushed the recording button and tried to compose a greeting again.

"Hi! This is Sora, Wielder of Light. I can't answer the phone right now because I'm sealing a Keyhole. Please leave your plea of rescue from Heartless and slash or Nobodies after the beep." _Beep._

He laughed at himself. That sounded stupider than he had thought. He pressed said button again.

"Sora here. You're hearing this message, and that means I'm not around to answer the phone. So say what you want after the beep." _Beep_.

"You _do_ know that this is Sora's number, right? Well, he's not here at the moment, so leave your message after that long, irritating sound we call a beep. He promises that he'll try to call you back within this lifetime." _Beep_.

He sighed, thinking how one simple task could eat away at least four hours of his highly _unusual_ life.

_That ain't just unusual, it's just plain _weird.

"Shut it," he said aloud, knowing that his antiform would just shrug his warning off. Maybe he should drive into Final Form more often; the transformation seemed to have a calming effect on him, and he _never_ transformed into Antiform when he drove to said Form. What the heck; he was _already _used to voices talking in his head all the time.

His phone suddenly rang, jarring him out of his thoughts. He let his hand hover over the reciever for a moment before deciding to let the answering machine pick up.

"You _do_ know that this is Sora's number, right? Well, he's not here at the moment, so leave your message after that long, irritating sound we call a beep. He promises that he'll try to call you back within this lifetime." _Beep_.

His eyebrow raised as he recognized his Nobody's (not Other Side anymore, but still with the capitals) voice. "Well _yeah_ I do know this is your number (he could almost see Roxas rolling his eyes on the other end of the line), Sora. This is Roxas, and I _know_ you're there listening to me talk like some demented person..erh...Nobody, _whatever_. Just wanna know if you feel like sparring this afternoon for the upcoming Advanced SHM midterms...? 'round four o' clock at the Main Island docks...C'mon Sora, stop holing yourself in your room, you need some exercise and---"

"Alright, _alright_, stop making lame excuses, Rox," Sora sighed as he picked up the phone. "I'll be at the docks in a couple of minutes, so you'd better portal over there the moment you put down that phone."

"Don't be so _touchy_, Other."

"I am _not_ touchy! Have you never seen me in a mood before!"

A long silence on the other end. "Uhhh, no. And neither have anyone else. You've always been the happy guy around here."

He grimaced. Yes, he'd always _been_ the happy guy, but being happy all the time took a _lot_ of work. And from his situation right now, he didn't feel like laughing.

"Sora?"

"Oh! Sorry. Since when did the Castle have a phone, anyway?"

Roxas sounded like he had just stuck his fist in his mouth."Actually this is Naminé's phone, mine got wasted when Larxene chucked it at Axel for no apparent reason. Wait. _Why_ am I using this phone, anyway?"

"Beats me." The Castle That Never Was _really _sounded like a very violent place, but sooner or later he'd have to come _visit_ (the term sounded a bit wrong, because the moment he touched Castle ground he'd get killed for sure). "I'm going already, Rox."

"Okay, meet you there in about...thirty seconds."

"Ha ha very funny, you're such a riot."

"No, really, thirty seconds."

Sora rolled his eyes.

----------

He glanced at the at the blonde leaning on his arm, her chest rising up and down in the motion of sleep. They _had_ been sitting here on the top of Twilight Town's clocktower for some time now, talking and laughing and smiling at each other all the way.

He admitted to himself that _yes_, he had fallen for Naminé, the Nobody who had acted as his guide and savior in Castle Oblivion, and who had restored Sora's memories, knowing that in the process she is erasing his memories of her.

Yes, he had fallen for Naminé, but for a reason he didn't know exactly.

Her looks? Definitely. Her eyes were just so _blue_.

Her personality? Yes. He found calm in her company.

Her _origin_?

_There_ the question remained. Did he love Naminé because she was _Kairi's_ Nobody? Did he love her because he _got tired_ of chasing after her Other? Did he love her because he wanted to somehow make Kairi realize what she had missed?

Who did he _love_? Kairi or Kairi's shadow?

He shivered.

"Riku?" Naminé looked up curiously. "Is something wrong?"

"N-no, nothing," he shook his head vehemently, blushing.

She squinted, her lips coming together in a pout. "Yeah, something's up with you. Spit it out."

He stared at the girl. She had the uncanny ability to drag things that he would've never normally said out of his mouth. He sighed, running a hand through his hair, and prepared to ask the question that would effectively change Naminé's perspective on him, for better or for worse. It was a question most boys asked and prayed fervently for the right answer.

"Naminé?"

"Yes?"

"Would you be my girlfriend?"

Naminé's eyes widened and she leant back from him, teetering dangerously on the ledge of a fifty-metre drop off the clock face. Her mouth worked soundlessly. It looked as if she was hyperventilating.

"Nam?" he asked nervously.

"Say it again," she breathed, her eyes sparkling in the setting sun's light. He raised an eyebrow.

"Would you be my girlfriend?" he repeated.

"Say it five times over."

"Would you be my girlfriend?"

"Would you be my girlfriend?"

"Would you be my girlfriend?"

"Would you be my girlfriend?"

"Would you be m---" He didn't have a chance to finish his fifth question, as Naminé had thrown his arms around his neck and kissed him.

"Is that answer enough?" she giggled breathlessly as they broke apart. His head still reeled from her boldness, he didn't know Naminé was capable of _that_. He nodded mutely and suddenly grinned. His heart was still pounding.

"But--"

His heart suddenly pounded a _lot_ faster. From the look on Naminé's face she was about to ask a question that Riku would have to, but regret answering.

"What about my Other?" she said in a small voice, as if she regretted asking it too.

"Kairi?" he said in his best offhand voice, trying to conceal his nervousness. "She's a friend. Nothing more."

"Then why is your voice shaking?"

He bit his lip, the disbelief in Naminé's eyes unbearable.

"Naminé, forget about Kairi, it's _you_ I like, not her."

"Is it because I'm _me_, or is it because I'm her _shadow?_" her lower lip trembled.

Funny how such a happy situation could turn into such a mess in the span of five measly minutes.

"She's not letting you go, isn't she?" she continued, her pitch of voice rising with every syllable. "She's _not_ letting you get over her! You _still_ love her, don't you!"

Riku shook his head frantically. "That's why I want to be with you---" he cut his sentence off, suddenly realizing how that sounded.

"_That's_ why you want to be with me! So that I can be a _replacement_ for Kairi?"

"It's not what I said! Naminé! Calm down!"

"She _already_ has Sora, why does she have to have you too!" She almost bellowed, tears streaming down her face now. "_Why_ does everything I do have to be a _shadow_ of what she does! I _love_ you, Riku! Me! Naminé!"

"But I never said--"

"I've had enough." She said, looking more angry (if Nobodies _felt_ angry; the fact that they couldn't even _feel_ somehow made him feel more guilty) than he had ever seen her before. "I've had _enough_."

And with that she portalled out.

Riku sighed. Loving a Nobody was more complicated than he thought. He stood up and began the long descent down the tower, knowing that if Naminé went to _kill_ Kairi at this exact moment, she'd find the redhead sitting on the paopu tree on _their_ island. If he hurried he still might be able to catch them and break them apart. _Where was his portalling when he needed it the most_?

He lost his footing on the thirteenth step down (yes, he counted them) and for a split second, time stopped.

The Twilight Town Clocktower _was_ high.

He struggled to catch hold of anything, but his attempts were futile.

_I can't die this way! _

"_Naminé_!" He yelled as loud as he could before falling backwards ever so slowly in his mind...

And the world blacked out for Riku Alcaia.

----------

Read. Review. And _yes_, someone _will_ go (or fade into darkness, kick the bucket, be offed, or just _die_) in this fic, for those who ask.

Flamers, go ahead.


	12. Chain it Down

**A/N: **Here I am! _There_, I've changed this fic's category, it's now under _Angst_ for the next few chapters. Ahh...I'm such a depressed person. So anyway there _are_ some lightheartedness in this chapter (or the next. Or the next one after. Or in the whole fic. You get the picture), but I can guarantee you that overall, this is a story that revolves about _Sora's_ being more human, _Kairi's_ being less than a perfect princess of light, and _Riku's_ inclination to be jealous of Sora,...feh. I'm not saying anything else. Okay. Read already.

**Disclaimer:** As I've typed in a fit of anger in the last _eleven_ chapters, I DO NOT OWN Kingdom Hearts.

**XII: **C**h**a**in**** _It_ D**_ow_**n**

"Why...? Why did it all come to this?" she murmured as she fingered the thalassa-shell charm, her heart heavy, her mind tired. She was here, sitting on the very paopu tree that they had come to cherish; the paopu tree that had been witness to their talk of different worlds, back then when they were still the best of friends.

Her breath caught in her throat. _Still?_

She _wanted_ their friendship back. She thought longingly of the days before the Heartless ravaged their islands. She even _wished_ the Heartless never came. What if Riku never opened the Keyhole? What if none of this had ever happened?

_Impossible. Riku was born a Wielder, and will forever be a Wielder. The Keyblade would then pass onto _him_, and everything would _have_ to happen._

She wanted to kick herself for wishing for a very impossible event. But that was exactly what wishes were _for_, right?

Riku no longer spared her the most fleeting of glances; he was ignoring her outright for, she supposed, her outburst last Halloween against _his_ best friend. Earlier that afternoon she had seen them hand in hand as they walked the corridors of the Academy, talking like they didn't have a care in the world, ignoring the pointed stares and the whispers that followed them. They strode along as if the world were theirs. Him and Naminé. _Her shadow_.

She had already been replaced in Riku's heart because she had almost gone berserk on his best friend (repeated for emphasis). Who _wouldn't_ get mad if someone left you over and over again, not caring if he hurt you or not? Some might say that _she's_ a _princess_ of light, and that _she_ wasn't like any ordinary girl who could _rant _and get _pissed off_.

_Not true._ Was she expected to be some goody-goody who was just somebody else to be saved from the darkness? A _damsel in distress_?

Hell, she _hated_ that term. She can fight on her own, thank you very much. She had learned to use (and be very good at it, she might add) a crossbow in Field Battles, and if pressured, _yes_, she will fight. But what did _another_ particular Wielder do?

He left her. To _protect_ her.

Now, Kairi understood the reason, he _loved_ her, he didn't want her to get hurt. _But_ leaving her because he thought she couldn't handle herself? Uh, no, she didn't exactly approve of that.

How she _hated_ him. She hated him with such a passion that if she had a Heartless, it most certainly would be able to take over Kingdom Hearts itself. She _hated_ him. But mostly she hated herself for falling in love.

With the most unreachable person in existence. _The balance_. The Keybalde Master. The Wielder of Light. The Key to Kingdom Hearts. Her head was starting to get a headache from enumerating his titles.

Simply _Sora._

Her back stiffened; pounding footsteps (and she could tell it was _really_ pounding. Just try to stomp loud on sand; let's see if you make a sound) had snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked over her shoulder to see a _fuming_ blonde girl, her chest heaving with every mad breath she took, her legs leaving strands of darkness traced in the air in their wake.

"N-Naminé?" She choked out, not liking the fact that she _was_ angry, even if Nobodies couldn't even _feel_.

"_You_," she hissed, her electric blue eyes sparkling with anger.

Kairi jumped off the tree and the raised Island it was planted on in one smooth movement, never keeping her eyes off Naminé's. She backed slowly into the door which separated this place from the main beach.

"Naminé, what...?"

"Why? _Why does he still love you!_"

She blinked. She wanted to say she had no idea what she was talking about, but that irritating voise in her head told her that she knew _exactly_ why her normally peaceful (a little bit pushover) Nobody was looking murderous right now. And she _really_ looked like she just might kill her, and she would feel no remorse, because she couldn't _feel_. Suddenly getting on a _very_ wide expanse of beach seemed like a good idea. Her hand groped for the lock on the wooden door.

Naminé slowly walked closer, the gleam in her eyes very much like a predator who'd just cornered its prey.

_Come on, stupid lock!_

"_TELL ME WHY!"_ she screamed.

"I _don't_ know, Naminé!" she shouted back, her heart beating _fast_. "I don't _know_ why Riku loves me! I didn't even know he still _cared_ about me!"

"Then why won't you let him _go!"_

"I'm not holding him back! You can be his girlfriend for all I care!" Naminé stood still, her mouth working. Throwing in that card must've been effective to have such an effect as that. Well, it _was_ true, she had no right to control what Riku wanted to do. If he still loved Kairi, then ignoring her was a funny way to show it. Her skittering hand found the rusty bolt and she slid it open. The door swung out with a nasty creak into the docks.

"_Kairi! Come back here!"_

----------

"Ow! Did you know that this is the third time I've had a close encounter with a _hedge_? What is the matter with you?"

Sora rubbed his left arm, which was now a showcase of assorted cuts and bruises he had acquired when Roxas pulled him down behind the nearest bush (which was saying something, the nearest bush was about ten feet away). He watched blood trickle down and drip onto the white sand, and he threw his Nobody a very dirty look.

"So_ra_, there's somebody coming!"

For the life of him he just couldn't figure out what exactly was wrong with somebody seeing them sparring. "And _so what_?"

They had been sparring on the docks for about an hour and a half earlier. Seriously, Roxas' synch blades had a _huge_ advantage over Sora's solo one, and Sora almost always found himself on the losing end. He _tried_ Driving into another form so that he could synchronize two Keyblades too, but for some reason he couldn't. He had realized that he hadn't driven into another Form (save for the memorable Final he adopted during Halloween night) ever since he and Roxas had unmerged; and he remembered that even that Final Form seemed to drain him of energy. He'd better go see those three fairies sometime.

Roxas had just shrugged at this occurence and continued to pound on him. One advantage that Sora had was that he could summon the Keyblade at will, even if it was thrown out of his reach. It _always_ came back. He supposed Roxas could do the same, he _was_ his Nobody, but he couldn't get the hang of it. Thus Sora found Strike Raids effective; knocking the Keyblades out of Roxas' hands proved to be a good strategy.

He was about to yell at Roxas for dragging him behind the bush when the Wielder clamped a hand tightly to his mouth, silencing him.

"Shhh! Sora, keep quiet!" he breathed as he peered over the bush. Defeated, Sora rolled his eyes and followed suit. And for once, he was glad Roxas had told him to shut up.

"_N-Naminé! _Honest! I am _NOT_ holding him back! It's not my _fault!_"

His eyes widened at the sight. Kairi had just backed up from the other side of the island, her gaze trained on a very furious Naminé. Said furious Naminé was now summoning a _lot_ of Dusks around her, darkness streaming out of the sand below her feet. Roxas gave an involuntary gasp as he made to stand up. Sora put a hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

"I knew it. You're _insane_." Roxas whispered angrily. "Naminé _will_ kill if provoked. All Nobodies do."

"She won't." he replied quietly. "She knows that if she kills her Other she will fade away with her."

"I didn't know that," he murmured as he knelt back down, planting the Oathkeeper and the Oblivion side by side in the sand.

"_You ARE!"_ Naminé shouted, tears threatening to fall down. The Dusks started moving restlessly as they wondered why they have been called.

"How _can_ I? He's been ignoring me for the last couple of days!"

Sora's heart did a backflip. Roxas glanced at him questioningly. Were the girls talking about _him?_

"Why won't you just let Riku go!"

And with that question Sora's heart stopped doing gymnastics and slumped down in his ribcage, beating weakly. At least that's how he felt what his heart was doing. They were fighting over _Riku_. It confirmed his thoughts that _yes_, Kairi had fallen for Riku. _God_ his world was twisted.

"I already _have! _Naminé, stop it!"

Huh? Already _have_? His mind was reeling from what he had just heard.

"No. You just won't let go of him, even if you already have _Roxas_ as a replacement for Sora!"

Kairi's eyes widened.

Roxas' mouth dropped open.

Sora's hand clenched painfully on the handle of the Kingdom Key.

And Sora's Antifrom giggled madly, singing 'I told yooouu so!' over and over again. Roxas threw him a reproachful look, but his pale face gave it away. Maybe that look was supposed to that puppy-eyes look his Nobody was famous for...? Well, it _wasn't_ working. His heart pounded, his mind working furiously, trying to grasp what Naminé had meant by _that_.

_You are just so slow, Sora. She meant exactly what she said. _And his antiform did the counterpart of whatever Heartless do when they roll their eyes.

The redhead took a step back from her Nobody, as if she was at a loss for words. Naminé seemed to notice this, and her face darkened even more. "You---isn't _one_ boy enough? _Kairi_ you already have Roxas! Why, for all I know, you just like him because he's so much like _Sora!_"

He wanted to just _stop listening_, but he couldn't. His hand shook as he glanced at the blonde boy beside him, who was too busy staring at the two girls to notice Sora's gaze. It was a good thing too, because if looks could kill, Roxas would only be strands of darkness by now.

"S-shut up, Naminé..." Kairi suddenly spoke up, her voice gathering strength and emotion with every pained syllable. "_Shut up!_"

"Aaahh I found you out, didn't I?" Naminé's voice took on a mocking tone, the Dusks around her stepping forward. "It's _such_ a good thing, that I can't _feel_, huh? Think I can't feel _hurt_?"

"_SHUT THE HELL UP!" _she screamed, her tears falling freely now. " Do you _know_ the _pain_ of feeling? Do you _know_ what it's like to love someone I CAN NEVER HAVE, HUH?"

The pale blonde girl's eyes widened visibly at Kairi's outburst. It almost looked like she was starting to cower under her Other's anger, but she recovered quickly. "Uh, _no_, since I can't _feel_ anything!"

"You're so damn _lucky_, you know that! You can have Riku for all I care! Go! _JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! Leave me alone!_" she cried as she dropped on her knees, her tears draining away between the grains of sand.

"You know I can never do that," Naminé said in a strained voice, obviously not liking the sight of her Other crying her eyes out on the sand. Sora, on the other hand, felt a little bit...gratified.

"I'd never wish this feeling on anyone...not even you, not even on Ansem, not even on Maleficent..." she sobbed quietly.

"Kairi..."

It took all of Sora's self-control to not jump out of the bushes and put a comforting arm around his princess, whatever she thought of him. He momentarily pushed aside the fact that _yes_, this was the girl who broke his heart one cool evening ago, when Kingdom Hearts had showered the Islands with fragments of shining stars. He looked down at his Keyblade, its silver length reflecting the light from the sunset filtering through the leaves of his bush. At that precise moment he felt like breaking it in two.

Naminé seemed to regret making Kairi feel so bad; with a wave of her hand she dismissed the Dusks, leaving only fading strands of darkness in their place. She knelt down in front of the sobbing girl and bit her lip, putting an arm around Kairi's shoulders as she tried to calm her.

"Kai...I'm sorry for blowing up like that, I..."

But Kairi didn't seem to be listening, she still continued crying silently, her tears tracing reflected paths of salt down her face.

_That's enough_. Sora thought. _I can't take this anymore. Angry or not, she needs someone._ He was about to stand up from behind the shrub when Kairi's voice sliced through the silence.

"I _want_ Sora, Naminé... I _need_ him," she sobbed hysterically into her Nobody's shoulder. "But I can't _have _him, I just can't because I'm a princess of light and he's...he's the Key, he's the Key, he has to go and leave everyone because it's his duty, and I'm so mad at myself because I _can't stop loving_ him, someone who I can never be with, someone who---"

"Shhh, Kai," Naminé shushed the now-hysterical redhead.

"_No_ I just love him so much, and it hurts when he _has_ to leave and I can't do anything about it, it hurts so much that no matter how I love him, no matter how I'd give everything up just to be with him, he can never be mine, ohh Naminé he can never be..."

"Breathe, Kairi. Relax and just---"

"_NO_ I just want the pain to stop I just want to **_forget_** him already, I don't want to be hurt anymore."

----------

King Mickey looked up. Somewhere, somehow, a Wielder's heart, already broken, had been _shattered_ anew, and the scream of silent pain had resonated throughout Kingdom Hearts. And he had the guiltiest feeling that it had something to do with a letter he had sent half a year ago.

He traced a finger down the crumbling page of the book he was searching through. He had _been_ leafing through books nonstop since this morning, hoping to find _something_ about the origins of the Keyblade. He _had_ no choice in sending Sora out, he _was_ the Key to Kingdom Hearts after all; and he was the only Wielder he knew that could seal the Keyhole.

Really. He had absolutely no choice.

But if luck was on his side he might find some way for the Wielder to lead a normal life, at least until they figured out a way to seal all the Keyholes permanently. He sighed. He was just lying to himself if he thought he could _ever_ find a way to give Sora the life he deserved after saving the known universe twice over.

"Your Majesty?"

He looked up from the diagram of a World's door to darkness. It was one of his ethereal advisers; one of whom could travel between the worlds without the use of either a gummi ship or the Corridors. They had been called...he thought Aeons once. "Yes, Shiva?"

A woman with pale blue skin, locks of midnight blue hair and pools of ice for eyes walked in, ice forming where her feet trod. "Ah, King, I have a...message."

"Well? Read it out!"

"My concerns are not with mortal ones, King." Shiva said haughtily before disappearing into a flurry of snowflakes.

Kiing Mickey sighed again. That was the fourth time snowflakes had melted into his carpet; he'd have to call the brooms again. (Well, it _was_ better than the time Ifrit paid his courtesies, the room smelled like burnt..._something_ for about a month). He picked up the box the Ice Guardian had left behind (taking care to let it defrost a bit, if he even _touched_ it before thawing it out he'd get frostbitten) and ripped off the duct tape. Inside was a note and a sphere recorder.

_Your Majesty, I have been instructed to pass on this recording to you. Fallah Ivalice._

His heart skipped a beat; if he remembered correctly this Fallah had a knack for attracting the most unusual of callers; it was through her that Sora called the Castle and asked (well, violently demanded) to speak to the King. He felt his tail curl involuntarily around the chair leg as he reached for the sphere and pressed the playback button.

"_Tell him Organization XIII sends their..._dearest_ greetings._"

He had the funniest feeling that this call was no prank. Just like Sora's.

His gaze strayed to the sword hanging beside his portrait, the sword he used for knighting. _Tomorrow night_ _it shall end._

----------

Silence.

Well, not _exactly_ silent. Kairi was still crying, and Naminé was trying her best to make her stop.

_That_ was the scene which greeted Riku as he found himself on _real_ land once more. Somehow he portalled into the Corridors just before he hit the ground of the clocktower. He had been so desperate to find a way to live that he had called on the very darkness that he strove to overcome. He could swear he could hear Xehanort's Heartless laughing.

Voices in their heads was Sora's area of expertise, not his.

"You don't mean that, Kairi. You just don't." Naminé said in a horrified voice, recoiling from her Other as if physically struck. "You _can't_, not after all that--"

"I _do_. After everything that had happened, and everything that _will_ happen, I really _do_..." she said in a very quiet voice, as if really didn't want anyone to hear what she was saying.

"I---If _that's_ what you really want, I can help you," Naminé said slowly, looking uncertain. "I suppose I _could_ chain your memories of him."

Kairi's head snapped up; her pale violet eyes widening. "Erase Sora from my _mind_...?"

She shook her head. "I can never erase memories; I only _chain_ them down. But it's a reprieve--"

"Yes."

Something shot through Riku's heart; a very brief but very _loud_ scream of pain echoed through Kingdom Hearts at Kairi's words. That was the second time that day that something like that had happened. Owner of said bleeding heart must be _dying_ right now; to feel such pain could certainly kill. Good thing he wasn't _that_ Wielder.

_Wait._

Did Kairi just _agree_ to effectively _forget_ Sora?

What the _hell_ was happening with the world?

"How could you even _say_ that!" he yelled furiously as he sprang to his feet, both girls turning their heads to look at him in shock (well, shock was a bit of an understatement, seeing how Naminé almost fainted, and how Kairi screamed.) "Naminé! How could you _suggest _such a thing! After what you and Sora had gone through in Oblivion...! And _Kairi_! I don't even _want _to know why!"

"Riku..." Kairi said softly, her eyes pleading. "Please..."

On the other hand, the blonde girl kneeling in front of Kairi took a more _verbal _ stand on what was happening. She got to her feet as tears sprang to her face again.

"I...Riku, I don't know... I just wanted to _feel_ so bad, I just wanted to be loved by _somebody_!" She cried, her fingers struggling to wipe away her tears. " Now I'm _crying_ even if can't _feel_, I'm only _remembering_ how to, what did I do to _deserve_ this! Riku, I _love_ you, I think I really _do_, but how can I compete, I'm only a shadow of someone you truly love..."

He bit his lip but decided to stand his ground. "But you _should_ be grateful for what Sora had done. Both of you. He saved us all."

"Well he missed a spot," Kairi sniffed. "A _damn_ huge spot. You were ignoring me, Riku, and I'd be really happy if you just continued and _minded your own business_!"

Riku was left speechless.

"Do it, Nam." Kairi said stoically, pulling her Nobody down in the sand in front of her. "Chain my memories of Sora Hikari."

"_No_ I can't!" she said hysterically, a portal forming behind her. "I just _wanted to love_, not be hurt like _this_. I wish he hadn't brought us back!" she sobbed, falling backwards into the Corridors and disappearing out of sight.

"What...?" her Other said wonderingly. "_He_ brought us back...?"

_The things people say when they're upset,_ Riku thought, remembering that it _was_ Roxas and Naminé who told him to keep his mouth shut about Sora in front of Kairi. He sighed, thinking of something to say to distract Kairi from what she had just heard. Said redhead turned her wide-eyed stare on him, apparently a question on the tip of her tongue.

"If _this_ is what feeling is all about, then I'm sure as hell glad that I'm a Nobody."

There was a very uncomfortable pause as Roxas suddenly spoke up, revealing himself from behind the Gysahl bush he, Riku supposed, had been hiding.

"Didn't anyone tell you it was kind of _rude_ to eavesdrop on somebody's conversation?" Kairi said testily, staring at the blonde Wielder.

"Didn't anyone tell _you _it kind of _hurts_ when someone you've loved all your life wants to just _forget_ who you are?" he shot back, the Oathkeeper and Oblivion suddenly in his hands.

"Ro_xas_," he said in a warning tone, the Way to the Dawn coalescing in his own pale hand. If Roxas tried anything funny, he'd _know_ what a very pissed off Wielder can do.

"What do _you_ care!" the redhead yelled at him. "As if---"

"Tried and tested, failed all the time," he said nonchalantly. "_Yeah_, I can't feel, but---_Sora!"_ His eyes were suddenly trained on something behind the bush; his voice raised to a frightened pitch.

---------

Kairi felt her blood run cold, not at the frightened tone of voice Roxas was using right now, not at the flabbergasted expression platinum-haired (what? it _was_ platinum) Riku had on, but at the eyes that stared at her from Sora's face as _he_ walked out from behind the bush.

_Dead_. His eyes were as dead as those of a corpse's, the light that should've been sparkling from life gone completely.

"Feh," he said in a faint voice, the slight smile gracing his pale (pale!) lips making his expression even more disturbing. "_That_ seems to clear up quite a few things."

"S-sora?" She managed to choke out.

"Sora, let's just..._go_." Roxas said in that same frightened voice, seeming to fear for his Other's sanity, because despite of that _smile_ on his face silent tears were falling out of the corner of his eyes. Sora nodded quietly, his smile fading completely from his face. It looked as if he'd never smile again. A portal opened and both boys stepped through.

Guilt hit her like a brick as she watched the portal fade. She gazed beseechingly at Riku.

"Please..." she whimpered as Riku advanced on her silently.

----------

Feh. Feh. Feh. _Man_ I love that word. Although it has no meaning whatsoever...I think. What _does_ that mean, anyway? I _need_ to know... Ahem. Sorry for the darker tone of story, I dunno why I write like that. Also, I've decided on the ending. Well, I cringed a bit at the idea at first, but after going over it over and over (stop already, it's getting redundant) it seemed a bit more...fitting. However, if you have any ideas on what you'd like to happen, let me know, I might still be able to put it in.

Ah. I would like to give my hearfelt thanks to the guys who reviewed me so far.

_Cookies for you all! Yay!_ Please go on reviewing!

Flamers...go ahead, it's not like I'd call spirits on ya or anythin'. Or maybe not. Well, say whatever you wanna say.

See ya in chappie XIII.


	13. Plink

**A/N:**Ahh unlucky thirteen...

_Are you trying to annoy me on purpose?_

I try, Roxas, I try.

_Well so far you've made a very pathetic attempt._

Don't irritate me so much, or I'd kill you off.

_I'd like to see you try. rolls eyes_

Just ignore him. So anyway, this _is_ chapter thirteen, and it's a bit...short. Sorry, but I've decided that if I merge this with the next chapter it'll be... well, I _have_ to write the Nobody's Perfect parter, and it seems kinda awkward. I repeat, I do **_not_ **hate Sora. And Kairi _must _have a, should I say, _evil_ side. No-one's good all the time, right?

**Disclaimer:**How do you _even_ define ownership of Kingdom Hearts? I mean, I _have_ a copy of Kh, KH:CoM, and KHII, but does that actually _mean_ I own Kingdom Hearts?

-----------

**XIII**:** Pl_i_n**k

----------

"Roxas, seriously, my ears are ringing."

"I should've talked to him. I should've talked to him."

Riku restrained himself from casting Silence from the blonde boy, who was currently walking back and forth, muttering something incoherent ever since he had arrived.

Roxas and Sora had portalled back into the house that he and Riku shared after the _incident_ at the Island Keyhole; and Sora had absolutely refused to come out of his room after Roxas had portalled him there. Riku even _felt_ the Keyblade lock his door from the other side (which he took as a sign that _yes_, Sora was _very_ mad at the entire general population, since his shouted apologies through the door were only met by absolute silence).

The next few uncomfortable hours were spent in the living room, with Roxas doing most of the talking. A very bewildered Kairi was clutching a throw pillow as if her life depended on it, her frightened gaze flickering from him to the blonde. Halfway through the _confrontation_ Roxas had portalled out to get a very distraught Naminé, who had taken to sobbing throughout the entire night.

Riku wanted to slap his forehead (but no, he didn't do that, his hair made sure of that) in frustration; Kairi's chained memories were now beginning to break free of their bonds. As soon as Roxas returned with her Nobody the redhead started asking questions that none them wanted very much to answer; like the events in Castle Oblivion. Naminé regarded them all with a very frightened stare; the knowledge that Kairi would figure out sooner or later that _she_ was the one who chained her memories probably explained her sitting away from Kairi as far as possible.

At around midnight Roxas threw his hands up in despair; all of the things they had thought of to make Sora come down had been useless. Riku couldn't blame him; if _you _found out your friends had formed their own little love triangle together with your almost-girlfriend, and one had offered to erase her memories of you, wouldn't you be pissed off too? They all went off their separate ways; Kairi's memories filling in (and the occational glare she threw at Naminé), Roxas biting his lip, and Naminé hiding behind Roxas, from him or Kairi's glares, only she knew.

After they left, it was as if Riku was alone all over again in the house. This time it was more unsettling, since Sora always liked to make his presence felt. He thought he heard a muffled sob or two from the wall separating his and Sora's room, but _that _was the only indication that there actually _was_ another person there.

When he woke up this morning he found a note tacked to his door, saying that, he quote, "_Riku, if you want to live, don't bother me."_ The first, and hopefully the last, death threat that Sora had told him.

Now they were here, waiting in one shady corner of the Academy Quad for Sora to arrive; or if Sora would ever arrive at all. He watched Roxas pace back and forth over and over.

"Roxas. Please. Stop." Naminé said timidly, looking up from her sketchpad. She had been rather badly shaken by the night before, and she had not made eye contact with him ever since. He _had_ tried to talk to her, but all he got was a frightened squeak before she ran away.

"Come off it, you guys," Kairi said loudly. "Bipolar that he is, I bet you he'd walk through that gate as if all's fine and dandy."

"You are the most insensitive girl I have ever come to know," Roxas retorted, stopping his pacing.

"But it's true, and you know it."

Riku stared at Kairi; did she _really_ hate Sora that much that she didn't even feel remorse for breaking his heart? But Kairi (and deep down, him too) believed that Sora really didn't feel too _deeply_, the way his mood swings showed.

"Kairi, I think you should tone it down a bit," he said quietly, his mouth curling.

"Riku. I am absolutely sure that he'll push this away, just as he pushed _me_ away," she laughed bitterly. "He's always been a happy boy."

"No he wasn't." Naminé spoke up, pencil in her hand, the fear quite gone from her voice now, "He _killed_ the Organization. You don't think he's happy doing _that_, do you?"

"How would I know? You chained my memories down in the first place. You're scary for a friend, you know, and I'm still waiting for your explanation on _why_ you would do that."

Naminé bit her lip and kept blessedly silent as she went back to her sketch. Riku knew she was only protecting Kairi from the knowledge that _yes_, Sora had brought back his own would-be murderers.

"Okay, here's the deal," the redhead said loudly. "If Sora walks through that gate as if nothing's happened, we forget everything that had happened (she threw a not-literally look at Naminé) and we all become friends again, no bitterness, no nothing. Even Sora. Otherwise...well, you may forget that you have even met a Kairi Dalmasca in your lives."

Roxas looked at her as if she was crazy. (heck, she probably _was_.) Naminé's mouth hung open after this pronouncement, and Riku was just _shocked_ at what she had just said.

"Hey!"

Riku forced himself to look upon, disbelievingly, a very familiar brunette Wielder, waving at them like his usual goofy self.

"I told you so," Kairi said in her best I'm-not-freaking-out-now voice as she brushed past him to meet Sora.

-----------

"What? What about the orchestra?"

"We're a player short, your Majesty," a woman of twenty years or so said nervously, her hands clutching the conductor's rod tightly in her pale hands.

King Mickey sighed. He didn't have time for this. "Shelinda, then go find another one."

"But Your Majesty, the piece that we are to play after the knighting requires much skill, and we need a violinist of particular---"

"Just find one. Dismissed you are."

With that he spun on his heels and walked away, leaving an almost terrified Court Conductress behind him. As soon as he rounded the corner he ran for the Castle Library. Undignified as running was, it was exactly what he wanted to do, for he had found an entry in on of the oldest books of the Archives about the so-called Key to Kingdom Hearts.

He pushed the door open (no mean feat, for a mouse his size and a marble door of that weight) and ran inside, not caring if the door swung shut loudly.

"Ah. Your Majesty. How _nice_ to see you again."

----------

_Another_ note? She threw a hell-I'm-freaked-out-too look at the two blondes sitting next to her while trying to covertly uncrumple the ball of paper Roxas had thrust in her face. Luckily, Sora was too preoccupied with understanding the professor's accent to notice.

_Aren't you scared of sitting next to him?_

She penned down her reply under Naminé's neat handwriting. _No choice._

The ball dropped down onto the floor, together with Naminé's pencil. Both were picked up by Roxas.

She sneaked a glance at Sora, who was now trying not to laugh at Tidus' (wicked, but still amusingly accurate) quiet imitation of the professor's voice. She herself had to stifle her laughter, Tidus was _good_ at that. It was a miracle that the teacher still hadn't noticed the number of students who were burying their faces in their hands to stop laughing.

"Kirisawa? Hikari? Vat iz it that you vind vunny in my clazz?"

Tidus immediately kept a straight face, while Sora bit his lip, trying and miserably failing to stop laughing.

"Detention zounds nice, doezn't it?"

Sora shook his head. "Uh, sorry, Prof. Luccia, but I kinda got somewhere to go to after class."

"And where might that ve?"

The bell rang as he held up a tightly furled piece of parchment bearing three circles touching each other and grinned at the teacher's severe expression. "Don't worry, prof, I'll take the detention the next homeroom. I'll take everyone's detention; you can keep me here 'till midnight."

Cheers erupted around him, and assorted people slapped him on the back, laughing as they left the room. He only grinned and turned to her. She heard Roxas and Naminé inhale sharply at roughly the same time.

"So. You three coming with me and Riku tonight?" He asked, ignoring the professor's scandalized glare.

"Uhhhm... I think no." Naminé said shakily. "W-we have a..."

"...it's that Lifestream Physics homework. It's kinda difficult," Roxas finished. "Naminé has to teach me how exactly to do it." (At which said girl shot Roxas a scorching glare.)

The brunette shrugged. "Last time I took Physics it gave me one heck of a workout. I was never the same since."

Kairi exchanged glances with Roxas and Naminé. _Yes, _she was absolutely positive that Sora had very violent mood swings, but this...? Earlier that morning she had clung to Riku's arm while they walked with the brunette Wielder, afraid that he might just go berserk on them. She supposed the mere sight of her clinging to Riku's arm was enough to certainly make him angry, but no; no reaction at all, it was as if it was a perfectly normal thing to do in their perfectly normal day. Sora had just asked _why_ Kairi looked so pale, asking if she was feeling cold.

Well, she was almost tempted to say _yes_ she was feeling cold, not on the outside but in her heart, the way he was acting, the way he _pushed_ the issue away. But she didn't, (aside from the fact that Riku repeatedly tried to step on her foot to keep her from saying anything) because she couldn't bear seeing Sora falter again.

"Kairi! Did you eat today?" Sora said loudly, waving his hand in front of her.

"Huh? Of course I did," she replied, her thoughts still swimming wildly around her head. "Why're you asking?"

"You keep spacing out on me." He said, his brows furrowing together in the way he shared with Roxas.

"Uhm..."

"You're gonna go with us, right?"

"Yes, yes, sure, Sora, " Kairi answered, trying to slowly inch her chair away from Sora's peering face.

"Alright! Riku'll pick you up at around seven. What about you two?" he asked, staring past Kairi at the two Nobodies.

"Toldja we can't, Physics homework," Roxas said offhandedly, but determinedly avoiding looking at Sora.

"Well, say hi to the neighbors for me."

She alternated her glance from Roxas and Sora. _What_ neighbors?

"Yeah, okay. Come on, Nam, you'd better get started on teaching me that homework." He stood up and heaved his (mysteriously already full of books) bag over his shoulder, giving Kairi a glance that was supposed to say 'I'm sorry' but came out as 'I'm so glad I'm outta here'. He grabbed a blushing Naminé's wrist and they both walked out of the classroom (in record speed).

She watched them hurry outside and felt like screaming _Don't leave me here with this psychotic kid!_, but seeing now that she was quite alone with Sora, she had no choice but try to escape slowly. She turned her attention back to Sora, who was now trying to close the zipper of his knapsack, complete with mutters of 'dang zipper' and 'books that have absolutely nothin' to do with the subject'. She sighed resignedly as she started to pick up her things and place them in her own bag. One of her pens rolled over the edge of her table and fell to the floor with an unusually loud 'plink'.

Swallowing an oath (hey, she _was_ a demure girl, and she never cursed except in the right situations), she got up, swung her body bag over her shoulder, and bent down to pick it up, and realized a second too late that Sora had done the same.

Instead of grabbing the pen Sora's hand grabbed her own.

And he didn't let go.

----------

Shelinda flipped through the World Directories the Castle had to offer; she could feel sweat beading above her brow. Why did Ashe choose _now_ of all times to back out? All she left was a recording and a scribbled note this very _morning_, something about _dusks_ and _slayers_ and something she couldn't read.

"Shelinda."

"Go away, can't you see I'm busy!" she almost yelled, her fingers tracing down the current page as she tried to find the words 'professional' and 'violin' one the same line. "Leave me be!"

"Shelinda."

She took a deep breath and prepared to give the speaker a lecture he'd never forget for the rest of his life. "I _told_ you, I'm---" she clamped her mouth shut. It was the King who was trying to get her attention. (How she managed _not _ to recognize the King's distinct mousy voice is a mystery.)

"Oh my---I mean, I'm sorry, Your Majesty!" she quickly rose out of her chair and curtsied (never mind that in the process about ten Directories crashed to the floor with a resonating _thud_), her hands turning clammier by the second. "I am dreadfully sorry, I--"

The King held up a hand to stem her apologies (relief is so much of a lovely feeling)."It is understandable, Shelinda. I have found you a violinist." He swept a gloved hand, gesturing to the person behind him.

It was a girl, a good sixteen years old, at the very least. Her blonde hair was combed back from her forehead, and two stray locks of hair irresistibly reminded her of those Shadow antennae. She was wearing some kind of hooded black cloak (now that she's thinking about it, it looks like the rumored outfits of the rumored Organization XIII, but she had long dismissed Organization XIII as a fairytale told to scare little kids) that reached to the floor, and her gloved hand was curled tightly around the handle of a violin case. She had the bluest eyes Shelinda has ever seen; a deep royal blue, and she looked more nervous than anyone she had ever seen in her life.

"Play for her," the King instructed, and for some reason the girl shot him a very nasty glare before obediently taking out a Castle violin from her case. She took in a deep breath and shut her eyes tight before placing her bow lightly on the strings. She seemed to wince just before moving her bow back and forth.

It was one of the most spectacular violin solos Shelinda had ever heard (and it seemed the people milling around thought so too, judging from the way the Audience Hall fell silent). As the last bars of music faded away into the air the Hall erupted in applause, and Shelinda was one of those who clapped the loudest. Young as this girl was, her ability was _astounding_.

"I have never heard anything of the like, girl," she said breathlessly, her head still reeling from her impromptu performance. She wanted to pry open this girl head and learn _how_ she was able to play something like that perfectly. "Where did you learn to play like that?"

"First of all, don't call me girl, I have a _name_. And secondly, if I told you where, you most probably won't believe me." And with that she turned her attention back to her violin and adjusted the tightness of the strings.

The King sighed resignedly. "She is a bit feisty, but nothing (for another reason unknown the girl threw him another glare) you cannot handle. Off with you two, and make sure tonight will be perfect."

Shelinda watched as the King turned around, made his way to his throne, disappeared around the back, and opened the Hall of the Cornerstone (there _had_ been some rumors that the Cornerstone was somehow...malfunctioning, but it was _much_ better thinking otherwise). She turned back to the blonde, who was still preoccupied with tuning her violin. She cleared her throat and introduced herself.

"I am the Court Conductress, Shelinda."

The blonde slowly raised her gaze to meet hers, and, as far as she could see, tried to smile, but ended up with some sort of grimace.

"I didn't exactly wish to be here, but... Larxene's the name."

----------

She gazed up questioningly at his cerulean eyes, and a chill ran through her. There was no light in them anywhere. She instead looked down at the hand clasped tightly around her own, and she knew at once that this was no joke. Her heart suddenly sped up to a gallop a second (or something like that).

"Sora?" she asked timidly, half-afraid of the reply she might get.

He stepped forward and quickly closed the gap between them. She was suddenly aware of how cold his hand was.

"Sora, what are you doing?"

Silence.

He stood there in front of her, so close that she could smell his scent: something like a cross between the ocean and a ripe paopu fruit. The sunset glinted off the crown necklace he always wore, uniform or not.

The silence was deafening, and he _still_ hadn't let go of her hand.

Another chill raced up her spine.

"You can... uh, let go of me now."

Silence.

She thought she might die of a heart attack if she stood there any longer. His breathing was coming in short, ragged gasps; and in the glow of the setting sun filtering through the windows she could see a single sparkling tear trace a path down his cheek.

Her eyes widened. She was seeing him at his most vulnerable; here before her a broken Wielder stood, a tear testament to his broken heart, his hand clasping her own as if his life depended on it. Guilt flooded her own heart with full force as she wondered how she could be so _cruel_ to someone who sacrificed everything to save the world. _Her_ world.

She raised a free finger to his face and wiped off the tear, her own threatening to fall from her eyes. She could see herself reflected in his cerulean orbs; and she could feel herself reflected in his _heart_.

"Sora..."

He suddenly released her hand and clasped _her_ instead, holding her to his chest tightly, short of crushing her. This was no hug; it was an _embrace_, that was the only way she could put it as. The pencil fell to the floor again, but this time, she didn't mind the sound it made.

_Plink._

And he cried, his body shaking with every sob that escaped from his trembling mouth. She reached up and put her arms around his neck, hoping her touch was comforting enough for him to just stop _crying_, because honestly, seeing Sora cry was one of the worst things she had ever had the misfortune to see.

"K-Kairi..." he said brokenly. She looked up into those hauntingly dull eyes, searching for the reason _why_ all of this happened, what possessed him to give up everything for his _duty_. His face was _so _closer, and coming more closer, and for some reason, she was bridging the gap, tiptoeing as she grabbed the front of his black vest for support.

She could smell paopu on his breath, and every tear shimmering unshed in his eyes. _Closer..._

"Kairi! Are you here!" Selphie's head suddenly poked inside the deserted classroom, her eyes searching for her best friend. "There ya are, I've been looking all over for you!" she squealed.

And she suddenly realized that Sora was sitting nonchalantly on his desk, his yellow sneakers going back and forth, his cerulean eyes betraying nothing of where he was standing a few seconds ago.

"Hey Selph!" he greeted cheerfully, waving at the brunette hyperactive girl. He bent down and picked up a white pencil.

"Kairi, I think this is yours," he said, holding the pencil out at her.

She wanted to scream.

_No_, I don't hate Sora, and _no_, I don't hate Selphie. She just seemed to be the kind of girl who fit the scene, so what the heck.

Yay for reviews! _Cookies_!

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Question! Sorry for being stupid, but...what exactly are Mary Sues?

Read. Review. Man, I wish I could reach 60 reviews, but... that's wishes for ya.

Flamers, go ahead. Bring the flamethrowers on.

The next chapter's **XIV: _A_**w**a**_y_, and it's the night of the Knighting. Someone **_will_ **say this line:

"_You're far too good for your own good."_

And _no_, for you wisecracks out there, it's _not _DiZ. He's dead. Period. Go away.


	14. Away

**A/N: **The plot bunny is _evil _I tell ya, EVIL! I've split the Knighting into two parts. This chapter has no Nobody's Perfect partner...so sorry, but the next chapter _will_ have one.

**Disclaimer: **...I don't.

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----------

**XIV: A**w**a**y

----------

"**A**bout _time_ you got here! I _swear_, the time you girls take..."

"So_ra_," Riku sighed, running a hand tiredly through his hair. "Give Kai a break." _From getting so hurt by you, _he mentally added.

"Oh yeah? And how long did _you_ take to get your hair to look like some dead porcupine?" Kairi retorted, brushing past him and pouting at the brunette on the couch.

"I don't need hair gel, my hair's naturally---_hey_! That was _mean_, Kairi!"

The redhead stuck out her tongue at Sora.

Riku just wanted to _literally_ knock some sense into them. Maybe a good, long session with his Way to the Dawn would do the trick.

"As I was saying, I _don't_ need hairgel, unlike Riku here," Sora jerked a thumb in his direction. "Geez, he uses hairgel _and_ hairspray! That's already over_kill_!"

Kairi buried her face in a throw pillow to muffle her laughter, her shoulders heaving up and down. Sora didn't bother, he just laughed out loud. Riku gritted his teeth together and forced himself to laugh along with them.

All he really wanted? Get them to _stop lying to each other_.

Now, Sora really _was_ bipolar; the way that he's been acting. But Kairi, for some reason, had actually stooped down (_yes_, Riku thought of it as stooping down) to the brunette Wielder's level and started to act as if nothing had ever happened the last Halloween, as if _yes_, everything was fine and dandy, as if she hadn't broken his heart in two pieces.

_God_, what was the world coming to?

"Anyway, stop changing the subject. How _long_ do you have to take to dress up?" Sora was saying, eyeing Kairi's outfit in a somewhat critical way.

"It's a _Knighting_. How much formal can you get than that?" She replied defensively, smoothing her satin skirt over her knees. She was wearing a beautifully simple strapless gown, snow white with clumps of crystals dotted around the bodice. Her white sandals (he _should_ know, he had stood by her, watching amusedly as he waited for her to get those shoes on properly earlier) were barely visible from below the skirt's hem, and the pearl pendant of her necklace was almost invisible against the white fabric. She _had_ chosen to leave her hair down and put on a simple white Materia clip, and Riku was grateful for that; she looked more stunning that way.

He gritted his teeth again. _Stop thinking about how she looks! Get a grip, Riku! You _have_ to find a way to get these two to stop being so damn _insensitive!

Him and Sora, well, they had argued for about fifteen minutes on what to wear.

**-x-**

_"I am _not_ wearing some stuffy suit!" Sora said heatedly for the fifth time, crossing his arms._

_"Sora, we're going to be knighted." Riku stated in a very patronizing voice. _

_"So what, Riku? Look at what the King wears; it's like what I wear, only it's about ten times smaller and it's colored red."_

_"He's the _King_." He replied exasperatedly. "D'you really think the Court has the guts to question what he wears?"_

_"And we're Wielders and soon-to-be Knights. Who gives a hoot about what we wear?" Sora pouted again, meaning he's going into his famous stubborn-as-hell mode. "As long as we're not naked, fine."_

_"So_ra_--"_

_"I am _not_ wearing some stuffy suit, I tell you!"_

**-x-**

And so the pointless argument had continued, in which after every six statements or so Sora had repeated the phrase "I am _not_ wearing some stuffy suit!", reinforcing the fact that he had absolutely no intention of parting with his trademark black clothes with the exception of the Academy. Riku had a talent for making stubborn people break down; he had known two very stubborn ones long enough to know how, but Sora's stubborness was something beyond the scope of someone human.

"At least I dressed up! What about you two, huh?" She grinned mischievously at Riku. "Lazy bums."

"Formalness...eugh," Sora pulled a face, at which Kairi giggled.

Riku cringed (instead of gritting his teeth together; it'd ruin his pearly whites) at that carefully neutral tone the two were using right now, and at the carefully calculated way they avoided close contact with each other; the most Kairi got from Sora was a pillow in the face, and vice versa.

"Let's just _go_, shall we?" He said loudly as he spun on his heels.

"Touchy!" he heard Kairi giggle behind him.

**--------------------**

**I**t wasn't that she'd just given up on him; she'd done that back then on Halloween.

It's just she couldn't stand being mad anymore. So she put on a happy face. Just for the sake of enjoying this night.

She knew Riku was pissed at the way _she_ was acting, judging from the way he stared at her whenever she exchanged words with Sora. Oh, she'll make it up to him. _Tomorrow_.

They were walking along the Castle Courtyard's winding grass path towards Disney Castle's immense double doors. Of course, it didn't compare with Kingdom Hearts' doors, but... _no, don't think about Kingdoom Hearts tonight. Don't. _Kairi gazed wistfully at the stars above her, wishing that (never mind how cruel she sounded) a falling star would streak across the night sky, so she could again wish for everything to have just _not happened_.

She glanced at the pained expression on Riku's face, who was walking beside her silently, and she fought not to wince. Sora _was_ infinitely better in pretending, _that_ was a fact. Said Wielder was now whistling, trailing behind them with his hands laced together behind his head. She couldn't help but smile at how..._normal_ the gesture looked.

"You're smiling," Riku said quietly, his eyes constantly searching for danger, the way Paladins usually did.

She peered up at him questioningly, and was slightly surprised by the way his eyes glowed aqua in the moonlight.

"Are you smiling for _real_, Kairi?"

She stopped walking. She saw Sora go around them unconcernedly and walk on up the path, then stop a fair distance away, his face shadowed.

It made her cringe inwardly, how Sora walked away like that. Hell, the way they _teased_ each other earlier made her cringe. It was just so _fake, _and the three of them knew it.

"I don't know, Riku." She bit her lip and looked away.

"Figures," he huffed. "I don't understand you. I don't understand why you two are doing this."

"Even I don't."

Riku stared at her unbelievingly before shaking his head, obviously frustrated.

"All I know is, I hate him."

"No you don't. You're just confused."

"Yes I do."

"No you don't. It'll pass."

"Yes I _do_."

He sighed exasperatedly. "No you _don't_, Kairi. You love him. We both know that."

"I _can't_ love him. Stop rubbing it in, Riku. I'm over him, I'm over loving the Key to Kingdom Hearts, I'm over _Sora_."

Riku muttered something before starting to walk again. Kairi had to quicken her pace to catch up.

"I'm sorry."

"For what?" he once again turned his aquamarine eyes on her, his platinum bangs gently swaying in the faint nighttime breeze.

"For you getting caught between me and him."

He shoved his hand into his pockets and bowed his head. "You sure are."

Sora was now walking ahead of them, his hands still laced behind his head, indifferent to their conversation.

They continued to walk in silence.

**--------------------**

"_**P**rincess!_ Thank _goodness_ you came!"

Kairi glanced over both shoulders to make sure she it was her before turning back to a very relieved Queen Minnie. "Uhm..." She looked around again, only to see both Riku and Sora with one knee on the marble floor of the Audience Hall, heads bowed, murmuring 'Your Majesty' respectfully. She hastily spread her skirt wide and curtsied.

"S-sorry, Your Highness..." She stammered, her bowing down to hide her blushing face.

"Oh, all of you, get up. Especially you, Sora, I am still very grateful for your help in repairing the Cornerstone," the Queen replied in a flustered tone. "Dear, I am so happy you have decided to come," she addressed Kairi.

"M-me?"

She nodded, the crown perched on her head wobbling a bit dangerously. "Yes, I--"

"There ya are!"

She looked up to see a frantically waving King Mickey, (who seemingly ignored the bowing and curtsying he left in his wake) looking as equally relieved as his wife. She curtsied again, and both boys knelt, touching one knee to the ground. Queen Minnie gave the King a disapproving glance, but her anger seemed to have evaporated quickly at the forlorn face the King had quickly put on. She gave him an affectionate hug (_really_, she was relieved, she was not at all curious on seeing how they would _kiss_, considering the fact that given their noses, it would be a very awkward postion (**a/n:** Hey, it's true, right? Disney, don't sue me, please)) before turning back to a very bewildered Kairi. (How would _you_ feel if the _Queen_ herself was waiting to personally recieve you?)

"As I was saying, it is really a _relief_ to see you, seeing that Mickey here (she shot her husband a look that Kairi never thought someone so peaceful as Queen Minnie could) had accidentally _forgotten_ to send the other note, didn't you, _dear_?" She added acidly.

"Y-yes, I have forgotten, my mistake, Princess," he said hastily. "Well, it seems that you have the briefing under control, dear, I have to run along and get this show on the road." And with that he spun on his (not yellow this time, but a very striking white, thank goodness) heels and hurried away, obviously itching to get away from his seemingly very _mad_ wife.

Kairi's head was swimming.

"_What briefing?_" Sora burst out increduously, apparently after finally getting his mouth to work properly. "Is this some covert operation or something!"

"Sora, _please_," Riku said, looking very much like he's fighting off the urge to roll his eyes. "Queen Minnie, ignore him, he's a bit high on caffeine today. Please, go on."

"If you would, then, follow me," the Queen said, gesturing with her hand. She walked out of the Audience Hall and down the Colonnade (ignoring the looks of awe the unsuspecting palace employees had; it was not everyday you saw so _legendary_ people in one place). Kairi could see out of the corner of her eye that Sora was murmuring something incoherent to himself, and Riku's eyes were wandering, taking in the white walls of the Colonnade, obviously trying to look like he _wasn't_ nervous.

As they entered the Castle Library Kairi could feel her jaw drop open. _What the--?_

**--------------------**

**K**ing Mickey was usually a very calm mouse. Yes, he was, for he _was_ the King, and he held _much_ more power than what the public knew. A word from him, and a very prominent figure would plummet from popularity; a simple gesture, and a whole World kneels down. So much power for someone so _dimunitive_ (he _had_ come to terms with issues concerning his height...and his impossible shoe size so very long ago)... _that_ was why he was so calm.

Yet now, by the amount that he's sweating, it's like _all_ the water he had drunk earlier was pouring out, and by the amount he's pacing, the Brooms _will_ be very surprised by the path he will most likely wear out.

He fought the urge to glance over his shoulder, at that..._thing_ lying haphazardly on the pristine marble table. His mind pounded; the Cornerstone of Light _had _ to be Disabled for this, the darkness inside was just too _strong_. He did try to reset the Cornerstone earlier, but the Hall was too much flooded with people for that. Disabling it was easy, and Enabling it again was much easier, for him, and only him, the King. But the thirty-second Recharge of Light (it _was_ the Cornerstone _of Light_, that alone should speak for itself) , which consisted of a very _bright_ column of light shooting up from the Cornerstone itself and engulfing the throne, that accompanied Enabling made it practically _impossible_ to miss.

Enabling was something that hadn't been done in four hundred years, and if people knew the King had just Enabled the Cornerstone, they'd ask why he'd Disabled it in the first place.

_That_ was a question he was not so keen on answering.

You can't have light without darkness, can you?

He fought the urge again. His heart was pounding. He told himself that it was only a matter of minutes before it would all be over, and then he'd never have to set his eyes on that _accursed_ thing again. Forged from the hearts of six Princesses of Light.

When the seventh lays her hands on it...

King Mickey paused at the thought. There was _nothing_ wrong with what he was planning to do. It was for everyone's good.

**--------------------**

"**Y**ou can actually do _that_?"

Kairi gave Riku a bewildered look as they filed out of the Castle Library, with six other _very_ bewildered Princesses of Heart, as they followed Queen Minnie. Sora bit his lip to keep from laughing at their faces. How _long_ had it been since he had laughed an authentic laugh...?

He couldn't remember. He admitted that, no matter how painful it was, to himself.

"And I thought we were only here to watch..." a tall girl spoke up, looking more a princess than anyone else of them, (well, except for Kairi, that's what _he _thought), her blonde hair elegantly swept up in a bun as she glided along in her sparkling ballgown, her glass slippers clinking on the marble floor.

"Cinderella, _I_ thought it was only gonna be a _Knighting_," Sora said aloud.

"Oh, it _is_ still a Knighting, Wielder Sora," the Queen said pleasantly (and he shuddered, she said Wielder in a tone very much like _Prince_), but she did not look back at them. "Albeit a very _special _one."

"For the millionth time, Riku, I didn't _know_ I had _that_ kind of ability!" Kairi huffed, apparently getting irritated by Riku's constant asking, but Sora knew that she was actually _enjoying_ the attention. Especially after what had happened between _them_.

"I have a right to ask, you know, we're the ones getting knighted here," the platinum-haired Wielder crossed his arms, looking amused. "I've been thinking that Knighting someone was as easy as tapping them on both shoulders with a sword. But linking with all seven Princesses of Light? Man...

_That_ was what Queen Minnie had explained to the lot of them a few minuted ago in the Castle Library. Him and Riku were both Wielders, and just being _that_ required some sort of special...ceremony. Well, all he and Riku were supposed to do was get one knee on the floor and bow down as the King pronounced them Knights with his ceremonial knighting sword. Nothing special about that, but the sword itself...

It was a special sword, the Queen said, that it made the Knighting eternal. Now Sora had been a little disturbed (understatement! more like almost fainted) at what being a Knight of Disney Court _really _was. It just meant that you swore fealty to Disney Castle, or, more specifically, King Mickey himself. _That_ may not be a problem to the others, but to him...

_You're remembering the letter again,_ Antiform giggled. _You just have to _love_ King Mick, huh? Making sure you stick to the program..._

The sword was symbolic; however, the light that it would channel once all Seven Princesses had even a finger on it would make the oath of fealty binding. From that moment on both of them would be bound to the Castle, vowing to serve it until their last breath, and any try to break said vow would mean a _very_ painful warning (or, as Jasmine had put it bluntly, die a very horrible agonizing death; there was no need to say that Sora preferred Queen Minnie's description).

_You're just a pawn in a HUGE game of chess_--

They had reached the massive marble doors of the Audience Hall, and Queen Minnie was talking very quietly and rapidly with the red-uniformed guard beside them.

"I don't get it, why am I so _nervous_ all of a sudden..." Alice wondered aloud, rocking back and forth a little on her heels, her blue aproned skirt billowing out more than usual.

"We just have to _touch_ the sword," an ebony-haired, red-lipped, fair-skinned (**a/n **do you _actually_ want the Disney description? Fine. Hair as black as ebony, skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood---_whaddya mean that ain't it? O.O_) girl pointed out, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as if protecting herself from the cold.

"But still, Snow (don't bother asking Sora; somehow the 'White'got chopped off her name, and he admits, it's _much_ easier to say)... I don't really want to touch anything..._unusual_ anymore, not after what Xehanort and Riku had done... Sorry Riku," the blonde shot him an apologetic look.

"Don't worry, I swear I won't go evil on you all," Riku said, laughing nervously, as if even _he_ wasn't sure of what he was saying.

"Sure he won't, or I'm gonna kill him," Kairi giggled, punching him playfully on the arm.

_--a chess game where you have nothin' to gain and hell, EVERYTHING to lose..._

"All right, Princesses, Wielders, the time has come." Queen Minnie smiled. "It'll all be over soon."

**---------------------**

**K**ing Mickey winced as the trumpets blared; even if he was inside his private study, the long and _loud_ notes of alto trumpet seeped inside from the adjacent Audience Hall.

He turned his attention back to the sword that was lying on his table over a mess of scattered books. Then he glanced at the _other_ sword on its left. Well, it wasn't really a sword, but when he's finished with it, it'll look exactly like one. Summoning his Keyblade, he quickly but deftly wove Illusion over black metal and curved spikes; the onyx shaft blurring into silver, the scarlet handle transmuting into gold.

A minute later, two identical swords lay on the table. He hung the right one on the wall, and he took the other as he walked hurriedly out of his study. He pushed the marble doors open and he sprinted down the Colonnade towards the Audience Hall.

"You really are too old to be reminded never to run with pointed objects in your hand, King Mickey."

"Do _not_ interfere, this is for _my_ kingdom's good."

"Ahah, dear, dear King, always thinking of his beloved _Kingdom's_ well-being. That _Keyblade_... think of its..._repercussions_..."

"Bind to the Light. It does what it must do."

He clucked his tongue. "Ah, there lies the problem...you _do_ know that no-one has ever tested this particular...mechanism before...? All we certainly know is that it can release hearts, but bind them...? I don't think so..."

He frowned at his skepticism. "It binds someone to the Light. Not to me, but to the _Light_. Allegiance to the Light _only_. Do _not_ interfere, Xemnas."

The shadows rustled and a hooded figure revealed itself. Amber eyes glinted down at him. The King stared back defiantly.

"Go on, then...but let me remind you, King, that in the brightest of flames..."

King Mickey had already continued his sprint down the Colonnade, finishing the Nobody's statement in his mind. "..._there is the darkest of shadows..."_

The darkness had to be chased _away _for good, whatever the cost.

**--------------------**

**H**e had no choice, really, except to bow down and accept what was coming. And that was exactly what he was doing now.

"By the powers vested upon me by this court, I, King Mickey--"

Sora stole a glance at the platinum-haired Wielder kneeling beside him. Riku had closed his eyes. Obviously, he had no problems regarding the whole swear-fealty-to-Disney-Castle thing.

"--with the light drawn by the Seven Princesses of Heart--"

_Why the _hell_ are you doing this?_

_Shut it, Antiform._

"--I dub thee Sir Riku Alcaia--"

He glanced at Riku again, and was impossible to miss that tiny little _wince_ that escaped out of Riku's mouth at both times the sword touched his shoulders. Sora's heart rate shot up.

"--and... I dub thee Sir Sora--"

He shut his eyes, not exactly excited about the impending contact of metal on his shoulder. Frankly, he'd rather not be kneeling here at all, because he knew full well that he had absolutely _no _intention of swearing fealty. But what _can_ he do now? He can't just get up and run screaming from the Hall.

He felt the blade rest on his shoulder, and immediately knew why Riku had winced. He could never forget the aura of _that_ particular Keyblade. Not ever, because it was of that Keyblade that both Roxas and Naminé had been born. He opened his mouth to ask the King _what the hell is this Keyblade doing in your hands? _when something suddenly shot through him, making him forget everything else, seemingly _coursed_ through his veins, and stopped at his heart before encircling it with chains in a very painful deathgrip. He found himself wishing that it _was_ a heart attack, _not_ the effect of that...that _oath_.

_Nuh-uh. Not on my watch, buddy-boy. No-one chains darkness down. Not me._

Light was slowly flooding his vision, and he had the funniest feeling that the chains were tightening, almost _squeezing_ the life out of him. Chains darkness down...? He thought the sword was supposed to chain _him_ to Disney Castle., and he had decided that as of now, it was _not_ a very wonderful feeling.

_No-one can live without at least _some_ darkness in their heart. Not especially you; you're the _damn_ balancer._ _You're gonna be torn apart._

I have to do this. I have to. It's my duty...Sacrifice.

_You know, you're far too good for your own good._

Whatever, just stop yapping and get those chains off!

_Asking help from me, now? If I break those chains, you'd be breaking your duty...ha!_

I feel like I'm having a heart attack... and I have absolutely no intention on swearing---

_Say please..._

Antiform...stupid light...

_Say it..._

Anti_form_...

_Saay it.._

PLEASE!

He glanced up and stared at the King expectantly, who seemed to have frozen, the sword hovering over his right shoulder. He appeared to snap out of whatever millisecondal reverie he was having as he brought down the sword's tip. "--Hikari." The Audience Hall erupted into applause.

"I now present to you, the two new Knights of Disney Castle!"

Suddenly he was knocked aside by a blur of redwine locks as Kairi launched herself from behind the King into Riku, who, in his surprise, toppled over onto the red carpet, to the cheers of the onlookers. He bit his lip and turned away from the scene as music began to play.

**--------------------**

**K**ing Mickey sprinted back up the Colonnade, his heart beating so fast that he thought he'd die.

He dared not look at the sword at his hand as the woven Illusion slowly faded away. He wanted to just lock it up and throw away the key.

The Knighting had gone off without a hitch..._to everyone else_.

To him, who knew what was _supposed_ to happen, it all went _horribly wrong_.

He knew Xemnas was watching his every step, and right now, he didn't _care_. All he cared about was finding a way to reverse the binding as soon as possible.

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

_What_ exactly went wrong? You'll have to wait for the day after tomorrow to find out, because right now, I'm having an acute attack of writer's block. Well, not actually, I _do_ know what's happening next, but I'm still figuring out how the _hell_ I'm going to write it.

Read. Review. Oh yeah, I've enabled anonymous reviewers, natch. I just found out yesterday that I haven't yet.

Yay for reviews!

**Starlight-x** Well, he _is_ a very optimistic boy. Optimistic to the point of insanity. XD

**Phoenix80hp** Maybe I _do_ have something against Kairi. I dunno, I guess she's too much of a damsel in distress, in my opinion. But I'm a fan of Sokairis, so you _can_ be sure this will end up a Sokairi.

**darkdude71** Sorry, but Larxene will be in the next chappie... so _sorry!_ I had to cut the damn chapter in two, it was like 10000 words already! thanks for reviewing!

**hikari-aozora** Is that a good sign? Should my readers be on the verge of tears then suddenly laugh because of some random thing I've written...? Or should I make them just cry? Or just laugh? Or am I just going _insane_? And hell yeah, Kairi's an evil girl...

**FlowerLady-Aerith **Here's my box of special-edition Kleenex. -hands out box with 'I Love Sora' stickers plastered all over it- Yours now. Don't cry.

**TgIiDgUiS** Angst is _such_ a good word. The happy chapter thing... you know, I might just do that. But the babies one...? The way I describe things like that, most likely someone'll report abuse to the admin. O.o

**Masked Felix **So I heard, so I heard, DiZ's selling afghans with his mummified face embroidered on it. Eww. The quote ain't Xehanort's, but nice guess, though. He _is_ the most melodramatic of them all--- _No_, you're not that melodramatic, you're just so..._wordy_...the lovable kind of wordy. XD

_Nonexistent cookies! Yay!_

Still haven't decided on the next chapter title, but here's a quote:

"_I sacrifice...my heart._"

O.o so dramatic! And if you're thinking Xemnas, Xehanort, or Ansem, or any other name the guy has anywhere, whatever disguise he's in, there is no way in _hell_ it's him.


	15. Antiform

**A/N:** Here I am! Finally worked out how I'm going to write this. Cliffies are good, aren't they? And because of the fact that I've _finally _worked out this chapter, I have to admit, I have committed a **serious** mistake. The quote from previous chapter ("_I sacrifice...my heart."_) actually comes from the chapter **_after_ **this one. I am **_so_** sorry, you guys! The proper quote was

_"You can cry on my shirt any day, Princess."_

Sorry, my head's been jumbled up _so_ badly... And yeah, I'll just remind ya, this fic's rating is _T_, okay? No biggie, just wanted to get it off my system. There's a reason why this fic's genre is Angst, so I'm warning you right now.

**Disclaimer: **The _Kingdom Hearts_ franchise belongs to Tetsuya Nomura, Disney, and Square Enix.

Mickey Mouse and all other related paraphernalia belong to Disney.

_Hikari- KINGDOM Orchestra Instrumental Version _belongs to Kaoru Wada and was originally performed by New Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra.

But... You Don't Miss It Till It's Gone's plot belongs to _me! _Now stop asking!

**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**----------**

**XV: _A_n**_ti_**f**o_r_**m**

**----------**

**S**ora stared at a very familiar figure, who was now playing violin with the Royal Orchestra (very well, he might add), and forced himself not to drop the champagne glass (filled with punch--d'you really think the King would let drunk Wielders run around the Castle?) he was holding.

The piece finished, and the musicians changed seats. The figure left the podium where the Orchestra was playing and made its way over to him, violin and bow clutched in one hand. He struggled not to laugh at the expression on Larxene's face as she walked up to him, which was a mixture of anger, apprehension, and ---_pride_?

"L-Larx--"

She immediately placed a gloved hand on his mouth (and Sora tried not to think of where that glove had been), muffling what he was about to say.

"I _will_ kill anyone who recognizes who I am, Wielder," Larxene hissed, her royal blue eyes crackling with anger. "So _don't_ scream out my name, idiot."

"_I_ recognized _you_, Larx," he pointed out, earning him a sharp tap on the head with her bow (it _hurt_, sixteen inches of solid oak _will_ hurt).

"Smart aleck," she muttered. "_You_ are very lucky I am under orders, or you'd be long dead by now."

"You're under orders to play violin?" Sora asked unbelievingly. "Organization _XIII_ must be planning something to make one of their members play _violin_."

"Yes--I mean, not actually--_geez_," she sighed. "It's a long story."

"Shoot. I have the whole night."

"I have a whole night to try and find the violinist I replaced, so I don't have time to tell you."

"Xemnas sent you to watch over us, right?"

"No, he made a deal with me so I can move out of Axel's room."

Sora clamped his mouth shut; it had been dropped open a second earlier. He stared at the blonde girl in front of him, who was suddenly very busy with the violin's strings.

"You're rooming with _Axel_?"

"Why the hell would I be moving out in the first place? I didn't think you were _that_ dumb, Sora." She snickered at him. Strangely enough, Sora felt that he had already _heard_ that snicker before, he just couldn't place _when_ and _where_. "Don't worry, I'll kill you some other time (_that_ was a comforting thought). Right now, I have to find that violinist."

"Why? You play great, you know. Way better than Demyx." He did a double take as Larxene _blushed_. It seemed so unnatural. Then again, it really _was_ unnatural, Nobodies weren't supposed to _feel _anything, let alone blush.

"Shut it, Wielder, I'm not the one supposed to be playing--"

"You're scared of playing in front of people, huh?"

Larxene fell silent. If looks could kill, the daggers she was glaring at him would've made him look like an overpricked pincushion.

"Who're you looking for, anyway?"

"Some Ashe St. Ivalice. And now, if you'd stop laughing at me, I have to go."

"Ashe's down at Destiny Islands," he informed her, remembering that there had been a Nobody outbreak near her part of the Islands earlier that morning, and that she and Vaan had worked _hard_ to slaughter each and every one of them. Of course, he'd help, but he was stuck with the Academy, Wielder or not. "South Port, Summoner's Square, third house on your left. In the Arcadias' home." he eyed her uneasily. "You're not going to kill her, are you?"

"Hell no, she's my ticket outta here," she replied, looking a tinge relieved at knowing where Ashe was.

"Good, because you won't stand a chance against a Paladin, much less two of them. Ashe and her, uhm, well, _Vaan_ are both Paladins, you know."

"If I were you, I'd stay out of Nobody business."

"I'm just saying!"

Larxene smirked at him and crossed her arms, the violin's pointed end in his direction. "_You_ know I can kill you with this, Sora."

"Is that how you greet everyone? With death threats?"

She cocked her head to one side before tossing the violin to him. With reflexes honed from catching hundreds of Strike Raids he had thrown at Roxas, he caught the violin and its bow by the very tips of his fingers.

"If you see the Superior, tell him I've done my part of the deal. See you around." He blinked, and she disappeared right in front of him.

He stared at the violin in his hands, bewildered. _Xemnas is _here_! Why?_

_Stupid question. What? Thinking he's performing tonight? Singing on the table? Man, the things I'd do to see that!_

He stood still, ignoring his Antiform's inane cackling resounding in his head.

_Obviously, he's in cahoots with King Mick here--_

Shut it, Antiform. King Mickey would _never_ side with Xemnas.

--_Awww, give the mouse some love..._

Shaking his head, Sora went over to the Conductress and returned the violin.

**--------------------**

"_**D**on't_ say anything," he warned the cloaked figure that rose out of the Library's darkness. Organization XIII's 'Superior' calmly settled back down into the white marble chair, and King Mickey could feel that he was being watched as he propped up the Keyblade against a shelf.

He frantically pawed through the scattered books on the table; the books which he himself had studied earlier, in hopes of finding a way to ensure that the Wielders remain faithful to the Light. He _did_ find a way, something scribbled in the margins of the fifth Ansem Report--something about the Princesses of Heart, and--

"I assume then I don't have to say_ I told you so_, Your... Highness."

"You just did, Xemnas," he said irritatedly, throwing a glare in the Nobody's general direction. He did _not_ appreciate his sense of humor (and the badly hidden pause before 'Highness', _that_ was insulting) at this point in time, he was already irritated enough as it was.

Horribly wrong. There was no other word to describe it.

"One...one of the Princesses' touch has been tainted by darkness," he said heavily, dropping down and sitting on a pile of hardbound books, not caring if his slightest touch turned said books into little puffs of dust. He had too much on his mind now. "Her touch, in turn, has tainted the light that has been drawn, and the binding---" he paused.

Xemnas had drawn back his hood and his face had registered as much surprise as King Mickey supposed a Nobody could remember how to feel; in short, he was stunned like _hell_. "Wait. A Princess of Heart does _not_ have darkness in her heart."

"Apparently, she does. Nobody is immune to darkness. Something must have happened for darkness to get a grip on a Princesses' heart."

"Which Princess are we talking about here?"

"The seventh one."

The surprise on Xemnas' face slowly turned into a very patronizing stare. "I think you might have had a hand in this, King Mickey, considering that it was _you_ who sent a certain letter."

"And so?" Mickey's brows furrowed; he couldn't see where this was leading to.

"You have even _less_ feelings than a Nobody."

"Nobodies _don't_ have feelings."

"Exactly my point."

He resisted the urge to summon his own Keyblade and stab Xemnas roughly where his heart would be. "You are treading in dangerous waters, Xemnas."

"I am just telling the truth."

"I don't have time for this!" he burst out. "I _need_ a way to reverse the binding right _now!_"

"Tell me what the Keyblade did, then."

"It has absolutely no effect on Riku; his heart has withstood much more difficult calls to darkness, and he has even taken _control_ of the darkness inside him. But on Sora... You _should've_ come forward earlier, Xemnas. I would've figured out another way..."

The silver-haired Nobody leant forward slightly. " What?"

"I would've known that Sora and Roxas had already unmerged--"

"_Roxas_? What does Roxas have to do with this?"

"Roxas _is_ half of Sora. He controls light; it was _him_ who controls the unbelievable darkness in Sora's heart. Did you really think Ansem would sacrifice Roxas only for revenge?" He glanced forlornly at the sheets of paper scattered on the top of the table; even his dearest friend's Reports detailed nothing. Xemnas again wore that stunned look on his face; Mickey ignored it and pressed on."Roxas wasn't only to restore Sora's memories, but also to act as a safeguard! Sora's most powerful Form, which brings down the chances of him Driving into Antiform accidentally, is powered by _Roxas_; the Final Form is a testament to _Roxas_' control! "

"The brightest of flames cast the darkest of shadows..." Xemnas trailed off.

Mickey nodded. "The Key's heart acts as a balance between the colossal darkness and blinding light of Kingdom Hearts, and to control those, you need an _exceptionally _strong heart."

"Well then," he leant back into his chair, his gloved fingertips coming together. "I am confident that somebody with the boy's iron will _can _stand anything."

"I am, too."

Xemnas' eyelid twitched. "So why are you so intent on finding a reversal for the binding? If Riku's heart can stand unscathed, how much more Sora's?"

"Kairi's tainted touch somehow _twisted _the light and---"

"Yes?"

"The darkness in Sora's heart has been...shall we say, _asleep_. Ever since Roxas has awoken, however, he has no knowledge that _he_ is supposed to regulate the incredible dark side of Sora's heart. Once they merged again, the control returned, but not absolutely. His Antiform still finds ways to show itself."

"The point, Majesty, the point."

He sighed and ignored Xemnas' impatient demand. "Now that Sora has once again unmerged with Roxas, his Antiform once again struggles to break free. Fortunately, Sora's will is strong enough to hold it back. But tonight, with the tainted Keyblade..."

He heard Xemnas mutter something that vaguely sounded like 'It _is_ already tainted, you idiotic mouse' (he brushed it off, deeming the Nobody somewhat distraught) before motioning to him to continue.

King Mickey, for the first time since he was declared King of Disney Castle, stumbled on his words. "R-reversal. The darkness in Sora's heart, his Antiform... The Keyblade was supposed to bind. With Kairi's touch--"

"For the love of the Creator, King Mickey, the damn _point."_

"Tonight, I have set Sora's Antiform _free_."

**--------------------**

"**W**ho was that?" Kairi said offhandedly, sipping slowly out of her champagne glass while looking at Sora out of the corner of her eye. He swirled his punch around his wineglass before shrugging.

"The blonde?"

She nodded, not letting her irritation show. Not only was he bipolar, but exceptionally dense as well.

"Someone I met 'round Radiant Garden. Name's Arlene." He stared at her, his brows furrowing together. "Why're you asking? Jealous much?"

Her fingers enircled the stem of her wineglass in a deathgrip, and her other hand was itching to get around his neck, but being the demure person a Princess of Heart was supposed to be, she made herself calm down. She exchanged glances with the platinum-haired Wielder leaning on the refreshments table beside her.

"Just asking, as if I'd ever have an interest in _you_," she said carefully, expecting at _least _a flash of anger of some sort from Sora. She glared at Riku, who had let out a gasp, before turning her attention back to the brunette, who was now holding his glass to the chandelier light and staring at the ice cubes floating inside.

"Sora, I'm talking to you," she said patiently. Sora blinked and turned to face her.

"Huh? Interest? In _you_? " In some logic-defying way Sora actually _laughed_ at the thought, and Kairi recoiled, her free hand finding Riku's and squeezing it in fright. "Who'd actually fall for _you_? That's rich."

"Sora," Riku suddenly said sharply, the expression on his face blurry, she realized, because tears were blurring her line of vision. His warm hand curled around her clammy one comfortingly. "What the _hell_?"

"I'm just sayin'," he replied amusedly, raising one eyebrow. People around them stopped whatever they were doing to watch.

"If you meant that as a joke, I'm not laughing," Riku retorted angrily. "You've hurt Kairi's feelings."

"Riku, _no_," she said softly, swiping a paper towel from the table and scrubbing at her face to wipe away her tears. "It's okay..."

"The _hell_ it's not. I'm sick and tired of you two pretending that everything's all _fine_, Kairi!" he almost yelled. Sora looked puzzled as he alternated his gaze between her and the angry Wielder. A crowd had started to form, and the spectators' heads turned collectively as they followed the argument. Kairi cringed as Sora opened his mouth to speak.

"Everything _is_ fine, Riku. She's happy, I'm happy, what's the problem with that?" he asked curiously, his eyes wide. _Psychotic, bipolar Keyblade Master strikes again_.

Kairi didn't have time to stop the older Wielder's fist from connecting with Sora's jaw with enough force to knock their Battle Strategy professor flying.

"_Sora!_" she screamed. The brunette, however, merely staggered backward (the crowd immediately backed away for a good ten feet) and stared at the two of them, rubbing his jaw.

"She's _happy_? The _hell_, can't you feel _anything!_" Riku said through gritted teeth as his fist swung back again.

"No!" Kairi threw her hands and most of her weight around his waist, making _him_ stagger slightly and lower his raised fist. "Please, Riku...don't..." she mumbled into his white shirt, fervently praying that Sora wouldn't strike back. Her pulse rate suddenly shot up as she felt both of Riku's hands encircle her protectively. She looked up and found herself lost in his aquamarine eyes.

"Strike _two_...ohmy_damn, what the--_"

She glanced over her shoulder at a very bewildered Sora, who was now staring at them with the expression of someone who realized he had just made a _horrible_ mistake. For some reason, it made her heart ache even more, and even _more_ tears stung her eyelids.

"Finally realized, huh?" Riku said coolly, his arms clutching her shoulders. "Psychotic issues acting up?"

At this point, she had really no intention of stopping whatever Riku was doing. He could pummel Sora to the floor for all she cared. All the _pain_ flooded her memories, and she _knew_ Sora deserved whatever was coming.

_He left her_.

Sora gave them one frightened look before he spun on his heels and sprinted away, the crowd parting at record speed to let him through. Apparently they had no desire to get caught on a Wielder's wrong side. Kairi watched as he disappeared behind an archway leading somewhere she didn't know...or didn't even _care_ to know. She vaguely heard the orchestra start to play again.

"Kairi...are you okay?" Riku asked concernedly.

She looked up at his face and she started crying quietly.

"Sorry. Stupid question."

She sniffed and unwillingly let out a giggle as she let her arms drop. "I--I can't cry all over y-your shirt, Riku," she said as she reached for another wad of paper towels. Riku caught her outstretched hand before it reached her face. She peered up at him questioningly.

"Anything for you," he said gently as he clasped her hand in both of his. Her mouth suddenly dried up as she opened it, trying to find words to speak. "You can cry on my shirt any day, Princess."

Stunned, she stared up at him as he wiped away her tears; the paper towels fluttered to the floor, forgotten.

**--------------------**

**S**ora staggered blindly into the night, not caring where he ended up, as long as it was as far as possible from the Audience Hall. He kept running into the corridor that he stumbled across, his thoughts a swirling soup of madness.

_Dang, you could've socked the guy!_

For a full five minutes he had lost control of his Antiform, and it had taken over. All that he remembered was a stinging pain in his jaw, which eloquently informed him that a very _mad_ Riku had just punched him.

_'Coz you've hurt Kairi's feelings,_ Antiform imitated Riku in a girly, high-pitched voice.

"_Damn it_!" Sora roared, still not slowing down. "What the _hell _did you do, Anti_form_!"

_Whaaat? _he said innocently. _Only told 'em what you were _really _like, buddy-boy. Isn't that what you wanted? She's happy, you're happy, hell, we're all fine and daaandyyy...! _he sang out in Sora's head.

In the span of five minutes, his life had taken a turn for the worse. There was only one vivid scene that kept replaying in his mind, as if somebody popped a broken sphere recorder in his head and hit the play button.

Kairi. Her arms around Riku and crying into his chest. Kairi _crying_ because of him.

Sora felt like committing suicide.

_Hell no, don't die on me, you jerk. _

His sneakers pounded silently on the carpeted floor as he ran through the deserted corridor, and he _knew_ he could easily get lost here in Disney Castle, and on this night, there was certainly nobody he could come across. Perfect, he realized, since he would most likely vent out his anger on some poor unsuspecting Palace employee who just happened to pass by.

_Killing! Yay!_

"_SHUT THE HELL UP!" _He bellowed as he turned left, blood pounding in his head, his mind still playing the scene over and over again. He stopped short; he had turned into one of the Castle's auxiliary Courtyards (which was just another fancy term for what basically was a huge circle of marble and concrete). Panting, he dropped to his knees, forcing the urge to just collapse away.

_Awww, Little Sowwa's tired from running... From himself, perhaps...?_

"You _bastard_..."

_Talking to yourself, now? No wonder they call ya psychotic behind your back!_

He winced, it _was_ true. People have been whispering about his sanity ever since that Halloween. Sora buried his face in his hands as tears started to rapidly stream down his cheeks.

_Hmmmm... You're talking 'bout King Mick, aren't ya? _

"Just _stop_ it, Antiform. My life is already ruined, why the _hell_ do you have to make it worse?"

_That's what Antiforms do! _he laughed.

Sora's head snapped up and he sprang to his feet, the Keyblade reflexively coalescing into his clenched fist. Little strands of antennae were rapidly rising around him as he slowly backed into the center of the Courtyard. Soon he was completely surrounded by Shadows. Now _he_ laughed.

_You're going insane!_

"_Now_ I have something to vent my anger on!" He charged at the Heartless, his Keyblade making a whistling sound as it hacked and slashed through the hordes of Shadows, its Disney Castle keychain glinting in the darkness. His eyes widened as he realized the more Heartless he slayed, the more came, with progressively more and more Neoshadows, and Neoshadows were _much_ more ruthless than their Shadow cousins.

_Ain't laughing anymore, aren't ya? _Antiform giggled inside Sora's head.

Sora twirled around, the Kingdom Key turning a dozen Heartless or so into dust everytime he circled. The night sky was illuminated by the hundreds of hearts his Keyblade was releasing. He realized that he had _no_ way to keep this up; he _had_ slain over a thousand Heartless in one battle alone, back then in Radiant Garden, but a horde of this magnitude was simply _not_ possible! The _hell_, for the all they needed now was a couple of Darksides for the icing on the damn cake!

_Be careful what you wish for, buddy-boy._

Shadows scampered away from a spot in front of him, avoiding the coal-black hand that had shot up from the marble floor. He stared up in horror as he watched one of the very first Heartless he had ever slain, the heart-shaped hole in its chest gaping in the night, rose up from the ground. He slowly backed away. Then another hand shot up from behind him. Another one to his left. He gasped as he found himself trapped between _three_ of the colossal Heartless. His eyes darted towards his right, which was blessedly free of Darksides. Run for it...

"_Magnega!"_ he yelled, swinging his Keyblade up. He knew the Darksides would never stick to the spell, but he needed a diversion. Shadows screamed as they were drawn by the spell, and the Darksides' heads were whipping around in confusion. Sora bent close to the ground and sprinted to his right as quietly as possible, clutching his Keyblade to his chest and letting it dissipate quietly in fear that starlight might glint off its silver and attract attention to him.

_Don't leave. The party's just-- _"---started."

As he looked back towards the chaos he wasn't watching where he was going, and he collided with a very black, very solid--

"_Antiform?_"

**--------------------**

**R**iku stared off into the open doors of the Audience Hall, relishing the silky feel of Kairi's hair under his fingertips. He and the redhead had retreated from the crowd into the Colonnade. They were now sitting side-by-side on the marble railing overlooking the Castle Gardens. Kairi had fallen asleep, leaning against his shoulder, her hand curled in his. Her dried tears shone in the night.

_Sora, you bastard, _he thought angrily. _How could you?_

Once he _had_ suspected that Sora was a psychotic Wielder, but now... It was proof that Sora had either lost his mind or that hatred had taken over him. Really, he'd prefer the first option, because he _still_ couldn't believe that Sora was capable of inflicting such _pain_ on someone who had loved him all her life.

Kairi. She wouldn't admit it, but Riku could see the wounded gaze in her eyes everytime someone mentioned him, everytime she teased him and he teased her back, as if nothing had happened between them.

He was caught in a rapidly-enlarging rift between his two best friends, and there was nothing he could do besides stand and watch and pick a side.

_Sora_. A brunette, spiky-haired boy he had known since they were in diapers. A friend that risked everything to search for him and Kairi. He was willing to do whatever it took to save him from the darkness, whatever the cost, even at the price of his life. A friend until the end.

_Kairi_. An auburn-haired girl who had washed up on Destiny Island's pristine white beach nine years ago, with no memory of her past except for her name. A Princess over whom he and Sora fought quietly through the years. She had thrown herself in the middle of one of the Corridors at the mere mention of Sora's name.

He had picked his side, and she was now asleep on his shoulder. Sora _should've_ stayed. The King's letter could've been ignored, and Kairi wouldn't have broken his heart. It was _his_ fault. And _now_ how dare he hurt her, and he even seemed _amused_ at the sight of her tears.

Kairi stirred slightly, blinking her eyes several times before peering up at him. "How long have I dozed off?"

"About half an hour," he replied, smiling at the look of surprise on her face.

"You make a nice pillow, Riku," she yawned, patting his shoulder before leaning on it again. He was glad her attention was elsewhere, because right now, his face felt as if it was on fire. His heart pounded; he had expected Kairi to mutter some sort of apology for falling asleep and then disappear somewhere. He had _not_, never expected in a million years, that she would stay with him.

_She's just upset over Sora. Get over it, Riku. Tomorrow she'll be back to normal_.

He tentatively put his arm around her shoulders, ready to drop the instant she pulled away. Instead, the girl shifted her position closer to him, almost _snuggling_ into him.

_Riku, you're insane. Snuggling?_

"Hmmm...am I making you uncomfortable?" Kairi suddenly said.

"N-no," he stammered, scarlet rushing up his face anew as he tried to focus his attention on the things happening inside the Audience Hall. He could vaguely see the orchestra arranging themselves and the Conductress preparing to speak.

"_The final number for this night is a piece composed by an anonymous musician who lived over two thousand years ago, supposedly for the Court of his or her time. It is tradition to perform this every time a new knight is inducted to the Court of Disney Castle. May I request all Knights who are present join us for the traditional Dance of Light."_

"Dance of Light.." He murmured, not really comprehending what the Conductress had just said; he was too preoccupied with Kairi's scent, which right now, he felt intoxicated with.

Kairi suddenly sat up straight and stared at him, puzzled. "Aren't you going to dance? You're a knight, you know."

"Huh?"

"I already taught you how to slow dance, haven't I?"

He nodded, his mind hazy, entranced her deep violet eyes.

"Ri_ku_, you're spacing out on me, why does _everyone_ have to do this to me tonight?"

He shrugged as he got off the balcony and pulled her to the Audience Hall, enjoying the stunned look on her rapidly blushing face.

"Princess, I need a refresher course on dancing," he grinned as they walked into the Hall, the crowd in front of him parting to let them pass. "Care to teach me again?"

The stunned expression on her face slowly gave way to a smile, and she reached for his right hand and put it on her waist. Her other hand was still clutched in his own. "Answer enough?"

The Audience Hall dimmed as all the Materia was sealed, leaving only the glass chandelier's light shining down on the dance floor. Riku looked around as more knights came down. A fur-trimmed jacket caught his eye; the brunette sporting it looked familiar, and the _girl_ whose hand he was holding--

"Hey! Eyes on _me_!" Kairi pouted, sticking out her lower lip in a way that he found irresistible to resist.

Kairi had a split second and her eyes opened wide as Riku kissed her, and he watched as her eyes fluttered closed as he deepened the kiss.

She tasted like strawberries and cream. That was one thing that registered in his head as the music started to play.

**--------------------**

"_**I**mpossible!_"

"That's the stupidest thing you have ever said, Sora."

He stared at his Antiform. It _was_ the spitting image of him. Difference was that Antiform was pitch black, from the tips of spiky hair down to the zippered sneakers, he had disturbingly sharp nails that glinted in the night, and his eyes were a sickly yellow color. In short, his Heartless twin.

_Heartless._ His breath caught in his chest as he realized that Disney Castle was _not_ supposed to be breached by Heartless; the Cornerstone of Light had seen to that.

"The--the Cornerstone--" he stammered. "H--how..."

"How the _hell _would I know?" Antiform shrugged, busy examining his nails by the light spilling out from the corridors. "Hmmm...do you think my nails are sharp enough?" he asked, holding out a coal-black hand. Sora recoiled slightly before furrowing his brows.

"You're asking _me_ if your nails are sharp enough?"

He cocked his head to one side, apparently still engrossed in his nails. Sora didn't know whether to feel terrified or amused; the darkness in his heart had just stepped out of him, and it was treating _him_ like its manicurist or something. He looked over his shoulder at the Magnega he had cast. It was still spinning, and Shadows were still frantically trying to escape the vortex. He turned back to Antiform as a thought suddenly occured to him.

"Sharp enough for _what?_" As soon as he uttered those words he immediately regretted it. Antiform's head jerked up and a wild grin crossed his face, revealing teeth that were disturbingly _pointed_. More like _fangs_.

"Sharp enough to take out your _heart!_"

Sora quick-ran to his left just in time to avoid taking the brunt of Antiform's sudden lunge, but his claws sheared through Sora's left sleeve, nicking his upper arm and drawing blood.

"Your heart is one of the most powerful in existence, if I do say so myself," Antiform said, calmly standing in Sora's position as he licked the blood off his fingers. "Possesion of it _will_ make _me_ the greatest Heartless. Actually, I already am, considering I'm the Key to Kingdom Hearts' dark side, but I'd like to secure my position..."

Sora stared at him for a second and suddenly, the magnitude of what had happened hit him like a truck. A _colossal _truck.

Inside him was the most powerful Heartless in existence; his _Anti_form, and somehow, he had been set _free_.

"The timing's perfect, buddy-boy. The Castle's _brimming_ with strong hearts: two more Wielders, the Seven Princesses of Heart, and a whole lot of Knights. After my Heartless storm the Hall---well, you get the picture," he continued, still licking his fingers. "And your blood sure tastes good. Wonder how a Princess' tastes like---"

Anger suddenly sparked in Sora. There was _no_ way in hell that Kairi will get hurt. Even if it costs him his life.

"You _bastard!_" He charged forward, summoning the Keyblade, his anger raging like a furnace in his head. "_You're going down!"_

Antiform suddenly dropped down and rolled, and the Keyblade sliced into empty air.

Sora stopped abruptly. He was holding a Keyblade all right, but it was definitely _not_ the Kingdom Key. His shaking hand dropped it on the concrete floor with a metallic _clang_. He spun around, ducked, and flipped backwards to dodge his Antiform charging from behind him, and, planting his feet firmly on Antiform's back, he kicked him clear across the Courtyard and watched him slam into a brick wall.

He turned his attention back to the Keyblade lying on the floor, glinting innocently in the starlight. The darkness radiating from it was _horrible_. Forged from six Princesses' hearts. He did _not_ summon _that_ Keyblade. He backed away and was warned by rapid footsteps that his Antiform was coming. He shut his eyes and summoned, specifically, the _Kingdom Key_, and threw a Strike Raid at his Heartless.

Antiform laughed. Sora snapped his eyes open and gasped in horror as he saw that Antiform had actually _caught_ the Keyblade he had thrown, which was, he realized with a sinking feel in his stomach, the Dark Keyblade.

"I know all your tricks, buddy-boy, and I know full well how to defend against them," he said, grinning, before throwing a retaliating Strike Raid at Sora. He dodged the Keyblade and cast Firaga, balls of fire shooting from his hands.

One thing.

He had forgotten that unintercepted Strike Raids _always_ come back to the thrower.

The Keyblade struck him in the back, and Sora screamed in pain as the force knocked him off his feet. The blade itself had sliced into his back, and from the feel and looks of it, right through his chest. He could feel warm blood trickle down as he fell forward.

He tried a Curaga, but his breathing seemed to be on fast-forward, and soon he was gasping for air. In his rapidly dimming vision he vaguely saw his Antiform walk calmly towards him, the Keyblade held in his hand slowly dripping blood. He knelt in front of his scope of sight.

"Toldja I knew how to defend. After all, I _am_ you, in a sense," he whispered and laughed cruelly.

"S-shut up..." he choked, a thin stream of blood trickling out of his mouth and onto the concrete. He tried to move his arms to push himself up, but it was like lifting thick bars of lead.

"Now, you'd better prepare yourself, " Antiform's pitch-black face hovered in front of Sora's, his eyes glowing a pale yellow. Sora gasped and choked reflexively as he realized fingers were stroking his hair, the sharp nails digging into his scalp. Blood trickled down his forehead. "Because taking out your heart takes a _whole_ lotta energy from ya."

The Keyblade clattered to the floor as Antiform's face grinned and disappeared from view. He heard his voice from somewhere above him. Sora tried one last time to at _least_ move and failed. His lungs felt like rapidly deflating balloons.

"Shh, Sora. It'll all be over soon. Shut your eyes now..."

"Because this is going to _hurt like hell_."

Antiform raised his hand and plunged it down, and the night resonated with Sora's anguished screams.

**----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

Lookie! 38 kb on WordPad, and translates into about 13 pages of Microsoft Word. I dunno if this qualifies as a cliffy, though. Writer's block had lessened, but it's still there, jumping insanely on Nobody's Perfect. Crud. I _hate_ it when I get writer's block.

Yay for reviews!

**FlowerLady-Aerith** Gotta love that Antiform. Based it off Sora himself, actually. Twist Sora's humor a bit, empty a bucket of black paint over his head, there! You've got Antiform!

**darkdude71 **You can stop twiddling your thumbs now. And yeah, I _am_ evil.

**Wing staff-4** Tense? Well then, how about _this_ chapter? Thank ye for the review, mate.

**Starlight-x **Oh the _damn _quote, so sorry about that! But think positive! You now have something to wonder about again; who _really_ said the quote? The oath, then. Intention: good. Outcome: _excruciatingly_ bad. O.o

**fallingstar** I'm glad I enabled anonymous reviews, natch. Thank you for agreeing with my point of view that Sora is actually optimistic to the point of insanity.

**randomperson** More twists to come... Keep on reviewin'!

**TgIiDgUiS** yeah, there is a happy chapter there somewhere... but I ain't saying when... o.O

**Phoenix80hp **Kairi _is_ so cold, isn't she? It is a bit justified, since duty _was_ chosen over her...but still. This chapter might make you feel a bit...sorrier.

**hikari-aozora** It's actually supposed to confuse readers, but I'm willing to help out. Which part, then? Thanks for sticking with my story.

_Cookie shower!_ Again, reminding you, the quote was from the wrong chapter. My bad. Next chapter's quote is _still_

_"I sacrifice...my heart."_

I still stand my ground. It ain't Xemnas, Xehanort, Ansem, or any other name the guy goes by. And now that's Sora's gonna--

_beep_.

Spoiler calls. My bad, _again_. Toldja somebody's gonna kick the bucket. Man, I'm so depressed. You guys know the drill anyway. Read, review, and tell me which is sadder, this fanfic, or my writing skills. o.O Flamers, go ahead. I've got a stack of painkillers right here.


	16. Shards

**A/N:** I _hate_ it, stupid stupid programming problem. I _still_ can't get the stupid code to work! So here I am, venting out steam on this Trinity chapter. Good thing it's under Angst, natch? Oh, wait. I've changed the genre to _Tragedy_. I have warned you (although if you've already read Nobody's Perfect, you'd already know).

**Disclaimer:** Kingdom Hearts belongs to Disney, Square Enix, and Tetsuya Nomura. There? You happy?

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**-**

**----------**

**XVI: S**_h_**a**r**d_s_**

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**-**

**A**ntiform swore under his breath for the---he couldn't exactly remember for the what time, since he had lost count a long time ago. Whatever. He still swore.

He glanced down at the brightly shining, sparkling, and giving off light in general shards of material beside the Dark Keyblade. Sora's blood had spread, creating a nasty sort of red puddle that stuck to Antiform's black zippered sneakers.

He wanted to shrug, but he didn't, because he was getting pretty pissed off. He once again checked his nails (held them up to the starlight---tweaked the thumbnail a bit, hangnails would be _so_ much of a problem) before plunging his hand into Sora's prone form.

It would've been a lot more exciting if Sora actually _bled_ when Antiform poked around for the Wielder's heart, but _no_... And he wasn't exactly complaining; the blood that had puddled under him from where the Keyblade had sliced through the brunette was more than enough. But still...a little more blood never hurt anyone, right?

Antiform scrunched up his face in concentration. He was poking through Sora's _soul_, not his body. No physical damage there, but a whole _lot_ of excruciating pain.

"Eight," he muttered, holding up another shard and throwing it into the growing pile beside him. Why did hearts have to take corporeal form as pink, shiny, _sparkly_ things? It _was_ hard to believe that these shards would give him _immense_ power when he integrated them to himself, when they looked all pink and shiny and----

He swore again and shook his head vehemently.

Sora _had_ stopped screaming when Antiform had ripped out the fourth shard; he was impressed that the Wielder could stand _that_ much pain--but then again, he _was_ the Key, iron will and all... On the sixth shard the brunette had stopped twitching; for all he knew (and hoped) the Wielder had already died. From shock or the massive bleeding (look at all that _blood_ on the floor---and spattered on the gargoyles at least ten feet away, Antiform was kinda giddy on the first three shards), he doesn't care. All he cares about now is--

"_Nine_." He stared at the heart-shard in his hand, and then at the pile beside him. It seemed pinker and shinier than the others.

_Oh the _hell_ with this, heart's starting to fade_--- he cursed fluently under his breath as he gathered the shards and started to Integrate them (nothing more than a fancy name for whatever Heartless do when they suck your heart into the space normally reserved for their own), relishing the feel of Kingdom Hearts' energy coursing through his veins (through which flowed not blood, but that special mix of Darkness and mineral water). He poked Sora's side with a blood-stained foot; as he expected, the brunette didn't respond.

_Of course if you're dead, you ain't doing anythin',_ he thought as he Integrated the last of the shards he had already ripped out.

He sighed as he started to rip into Sora's soul again, really, he _should_ be grateful, because it was only _Antiform's _grip on Sora's soul that kept dear buddy-boy from going wherever dead people go when they kick the bucket.

"_Ten_?" he said aloud disbelievingly, holding up yet _another_ shard. "_Dammit_, into how many shards did you get your heart shattered into, anyway?" Antiform yelled at Sora. If the Wielder wasn't so _dead_ he'd kill him (he _is_ dead, isn't he? It's take a _miracle_ for anyone to survive a two-feet-long piece of darkness slicing through their chest), but he _had_ already done that, so he's just pissed off right now.

Yes, he _was_ pissed off. Woe to the Shadow who dared to approach him.

"I _swear_ any more shards and ---_oh the freakin' hell shard number ELEVEN!"_

**--------------------**

**K**ing Mickey sprinted down the corridor. He seemed to be getting a lot of exercise tonight, more than he'd usually like. However, after Xemnas had screamed at him when he told the silver-haired Nobody that he had released Sora's Antiform, he'd really like find the brown-haired boy.

Problem was, Sora had vanished into the night.

His teeth ground against each other unconsciously. The boy was nowhere to be found; the last sighting of him was him storming out of the Audience Hall after Riku had punched him. He _was_ keen on finding out why exactly, but now, he had much more pressing issues on mind.

Xemnas had immediately portalled out in search of Sora. Mickey only hoped that Sora would hold control over his Antiform at least until either him---or Xemnas found him. Much as he distrusted the 'Superior' (_never_ trust a Nobody, that was a cardinal rule), he knew that the Nobody wouldn't dare kill the only path to their salvation.

He summoned his Reverse Keyblade as he ran down further into the corridor. He had already done a sweep of the major Wings, and he was now checking out the auxiliary Wings. He _could've_ actually called on his Court for backup; but then he would have to answer _why_ they had to find Sora in the first place, and he knew the Court (and a very mad Riku, and a very horrified Kairi, and all six Princesses, and a whole _lot_ of Knights, and-- let's just say the Court, shall we?) would never forgive him for tampering with a heart.

Much less the Key to Kingdom Hearts' heart.

Goosebumps dotted his arm as he thought of what the Court would do to him. He skidded into another corridor again almost bumped into a seething Xemnas, who had just looked over his shoulder, presumably hoping that Sora was only waiting in the shadows, liable to scream "TAG! You're It!" anytime now.

"King _Mickey_ where are you _searching?_" he hissed.

"I have already done a sweep of the main Castle---"

Xemnas bent down so that he was looking Mickey's eyes. Those amber eyes were unsettling, to say the very least. "Send more _men_, Majesty."

"You know I can't do that!" he protested. "The Court will _kill_ me!"

"As opposed to what they'll do when they see Sora _dead_."

"Silence!" Mickey roared. He was, frankly, getting tired of Xemnas; the Nobody never seemed to take him seriously. He was the _King_, his decisions were not to be _questioned_! His word was _law! _"You do _not_ talk to me that way!"

He shoved the stunned Nobody aside with his Keyblade and sprinted deeper still into the corridor, ignoring the familiar _whoosh_ of a portal opening and closing.

He whipped left into another Auxiliary Courtyard. And felt his heart stop.

**--------------------**

**I**t felt like eternity, Riku wished it _was_ eternity, but both of them needed to breathe, really. He stared at Kairi, who was still breathless from their kiss, and was staring back at him. Her eyebrows were raised, and he took that as a bad sign. He slowly dropped his gaze, suddenly very aware of Kairi's hands twined behind his neck, and his hands gripping her around the waist.

He _knew_ he shouldn't have kissed her. Aside from the fact that people were now staring at them, it was like _cheating_. Guilt snaked its way into his heart; if Sora knew what he had done...

"Hm."

"Huh?"

Kairi tipped his face up with a deft finger and quirked an eyebrow. "You kissed me."

Riku could feel all his blood rush into his face as she smiled amusedly. Okay. Amusedly, that he took as a good sign. At least she wasn't clawing his eyes out or threatening to cut off his tongue or something like that. He decided to try and be his normal lovable self, not be his stammering blushing self that he turned into whenever Kairi was near. Key word being _try_, seeing how close they were to each other.

"Obviously," he said smoothly in his best I'm-not-nervous-as-hell voice.

"Why?" She asked.

Riku's heart skipped a beat as Kairi stared at him intently. Why did her eyes have to be so entrancingly indigo?

_Riku get a grip just stay calm and STOP STARING AT HER._

He went with the first answer to pop up in his mind. "I kissed you because I wanted to."

"And why would you want to do that?" Kairi tilted her head. How she managed to look beautiful, adorable, and smart all at the same time, Riku had no clue. Maybe because he just liked her --no, loved her so much it hurt.

His mind was an overloaded mess of brain cells as he tried to comprehend _why_ she wasn't screaming at him right now, or why she didn't even look remotely mad or angry or irritated.

"Because you're the most beautiful girl I know," the words slipped out in one breath, and he cringed almost immediately at the shock on Kairi's face.

_Yay, Riku. And you said Sora was the total sap._

Added to cringing, he also winced silently. Sora. This was like declaring total war on his best friend. Yes, he _was_ still angry at the brunette, but no-one could stay mad at the guy who saved his heart, right? Right?

"Mhmm." Kairi nodded to herself. "Is that...true?"

"Y-yeah, Kai--" his breath got knocked out of him as she suddenly hugged him tightly, making his ribs creak painfully.

"Thank you," she murmured, voice muffled against his chest. "Thank you so much..."

Riku felt like fainting from happiness as Kairi beamed up at him. Kairi wasn't mad. He could deal with Sora later, when he came back. After all, it wasn't _his_ fault that she was mad at Sora.

"Thank you for staying here with me," she breathed, unshed tears shimmering in her eyes.

"I'll always stay with you, you know that," he smiled, brushing away a stray lock of redwine hair from her blushing cheek. "Come on, let's dance, _princess_."

Pouting, Kairi took his proffered hand and they waltzed to the music.

**--------------------**

**"B**_uddy-boy!_ Eleven damn _shards!_" Antiform screamed, making the crowd of Shadows clustered around him and Sora disappear with a frightened squeak.

Did he already say he was pissed off?

Groaning, he shook his hand to get rid of the excess blood before plunging his hand into Sora's heart. Or where _parts_ of his heart were. He drew out yet _another_ shard.

"Geez, that girl _really_ hated you, didn't she? When you said shattered, you really _did_ mean shattered... cripes..."

"Sora!"

He jerked his head up and his eyes widened. King Mick himself was standing under the archway entrance to the Courtyard, a very shiny and very _solid_ Reverse Keyblade clutched in one gloved hand. He grinned as the mouse blanched, he supposed, at the sight of Sora bleeding his guts out on the concrete.

"King _Mick!_" he yelled as he Integrated the twelfth shard, grinning wider as the King stood frozen in his tracks. "Too _late_, buddy-boy's all g_ooo_ne!"

He still stood frozen, looking so pale that he almost_ glowed_ in the starlight.

Antiform shrugged as he estimated the King would stand there for about a minute or so, horrified at the sight. He turned back to Sora and once again plunged his hand into his soul.

"Where the _hell_ is---"

He looked up just in time to duck the Keyblade thrown at him. He kept himself pressed to the blood-soaked floor until the huge key returned to its thrower, remembering Sora's mistake.

_The last mistake he ever made_. He laughed as he wiped Sora's blood from his own face. "Oh no no no King _Mick_-o, you don't kill me _that_ way!"

"Xemnas! _Now!"_

Antiform felt the grin slide off his face as something _hard_ and burning_ hot_ hit him on the back of his head, presumably singeing his hair (not that it mattered--darkness just scattered then rearranged itself into hair again). He looked over his shoulder and his hand ground itself into the concrete in surprise.

"King Mick! Brought company, eh? Mr.-Shiny-Rebonded-Silvery-Hair, huh?"

"_Wielder_!" Xemnas (whatever, Antiform supposed--Ansem wasn't really _his_ other, but adding another X to Xehanort would be _so_ much of an anagram to make--)hissed, his orange eyes widening. Antiform ducked just in time to avoid having his head collide with no less than a dozen glowsticks.

"Wielder-kid's _dead_! Thanks, so many thanks to the Majestic Mouse---_ha!_" He picked up the Dark Keyblade, and, realizing that he had actually no _use_ for the Keyblade (his shiny, sharp nails were more than sufficient), he looked around for the nearest place he could put it, short of letting it clatter to the ground. He really didn't want scratches on it.

Shrugging, he drove the blade into Sora's back, (dodging another one of those glowsticks--oh, so many glowsticks, it made quite a nice illuminating device) twisting it a bit to make sure it remained upright. He'd pick it up after finishing these two idiots off. He again scrunched up his face, concentrating, as he summoned all the Shadows he could sense, and told them to drag along any of their Neo cousins with them.

He opened his eyes and froze. Apparently, Xemnas was thinking the exact same thing. Nobodies had started to flood the courtyard, and a shaking mad King was charging at him. He quickly parried the Reverse Keyblade with his arms and retaliated with a offensive swipes of his own, sending the King staggering back. The Heartless he had summoned were rapidly decreasing in number, and Antiform felt a twinge of fear as Xemnas summoned another ring of his glowsticks.

Now, King Mick he could handle; nobody from the realm of light can use _his_ Corridors. But the silver-haired Nobody---he'd follow Antiform, and from the look on his face, won't stop until he's dead.

_No_, Antiform had no intention of dying, not when he's holding almost all the power Kingdom Hearts has to offer. But he couldn't run to the Corridors, and he was sure his Shadows won't last the onslaught of Sorcerers Xemnas had summoned.

So he fled to the only place he was sure he was safe. Good thing he still held _his_ soul tight.

"Nuh-_uh_, Xemnie! You _can't_ hurt me!" he fought the urge to laugh at the disbelieving look on the Nobody's face.

Xemnas raised a hand, probably to make his glowsticks explode again. Hm. He could really use the fireworks; it'll add to the dramatic exit.

"You bas--"

The silver-haired Nobody froze as Antiform grinned, and pulled the Dark Keyblade out. Laughing now, he let himself fall forward into Sora.

**--------------------**

**F**inally, mercifully, his vision had blacked out completely.

He'd been clinging to the last shard, the thirteenth shard of his shattered heart.

Antiform thought him dead. Sora thought he was dead, too, until he realized you don't feel pain when you're dead.

When the Dark Keyblade sliced through his chest for the second time, he could hear the sickening _crunch_ of his spine being crushed, and the abnormally loud grating sound the Keyblade made when it sank into the concrete.

The pain was excruciating. _That_ was the biggest understatement Sora had ever comprehended in his entire life, which, by the way, had flashed before his eyes for at least five times now.

Why the _hell_ won't he die?

Because Antiform still held his soul in a sharp-nailed grip. He wasn't complaining, though, because he had lost the strength to scream on the fourth shard of heart that had been pulled out of his chest.

The thirteenth shard. The memory of falling from the skies of Destiny Islands and returning the thalassa keychain was engraved on that shard.

_The hell this is stupid. I'm dying here, and all I can think about is how my heart got split. Jeez._

_"Buddyboy! Alive but ain't kickin', but hey! Still alive anyway!"_

What the---

"_You owe your life to me, then, and you're going to pay me back sometime._"

What? Antiform? You saved my--

"life..?"

**--------------------**

**S**ora gasped.

Then started to choke on his own blood as he struggled to say one thing.

"life...?"

King Mickey fell to his knees in relief. The Wielder was _alive_. Alive and bleeding to death on the concrete, but alive nonetheless.

Xemnas swiftly glided and knelt next to the brunette, apparently examining the damage he had taken. And from the way he recoiled from Sora the situation was _definitely_ not good. Whatever. Mickey was still too happy that Sora _had_ held out.

"Majesty."

"_Majesty._"

Mickey shook his head vigoriously before meeting the Nobody's panicked gaze. He himself tried not to panic because of Xemnas; Nobodies like him rarely showed their borrowed feelings. He inclined his head, gesturing him to go on.

"Majesty, do you have curative potions with you? Magic? Anything?" he asked hastily. The King's heart plummeted; he had left his potions and ethers on the Library table as he hurried to transmute the Dark Keyblade. He had bolted out of the Library without a second glance. He was all out of strength to cast magic from the fight with Antiform.

"N-no," he stammered, and winced as Xemnas' face fell. The Nobody made to turn Sora over, and he squeaked. If they tried to move him, they risked paralyzing him for the rest of his natural life, if he survived, that is. "_Don't_ move him, it'll injure him further--"

Amber eyes stared at him, the unspoken question reflected in them. _Now what do we do_?

Sora's arm flailed weakly before dropping back down, immobile.

Mickey heaved a sigh before saying the only way he'd get away from trouble with his Court. "Portal him out of here and save his life," he said reluctantly. "Ask your comrades for help."

Xemnas stared at him unbelievingly, probably thinking that the King still didn't comprehend what he was about to do. However, Mickey had no choice; if the Court caught wind of what had happened to the Key, he'd be exiled for sure. The Nobody cleared his throat. "I am taking him to the Castle That--"

"Do anything, please," he whispered, staring down at the bloody Sora, who was currently breathing raggedly. At least he was breathing, yes? The Organization would most likely be the only one who could keep this quiet...

Xemnas hesitated. "But what about the Knighting? The Princess? Wielder Riku? The--"

He already had a Plan forming in his mind, and _this_ one was failsafe. Sora will not be missed, even if he is gone permanently from the picture. He _had_ planned this a long time ago, when a disturbing question had kept him awake for nights in a row after getting wind of the Keyblade's choice of Wielders.

_If one runs renegade... _

"I'll cover for you," he said stoically, picking up his now blood-spattered Reverse Keyblade and dismissing it, leaving him with bloodstained hands. Tainted with an innocent boy's blood. He bit his lip. "Keep him out of sight until he has recovered fully, then send him to me." Judging by the boy's condition, by the time Sora awakens and starts asking questions, Mickey will be ready with an explanation that hopefully, would not be met by violence.

"I can't guarantee that." Xemnas said shiftily, alternating his gaze between Sora and the King. Mickey hissed; they will _not_ dare harm their salvation. The silver haired-Nobody was showing signs of having second thoughts of taking the drastically wounded Wielder under Organization XIII's wing (or in this case, black coat).

Mickey fidgeted; Sora was groaning softly, still incapable of normal, or for that matter, any speech. "Just save him, _GO_!" he yelled before spinning on his heels and running back to the Audience Hall.

An simple announcement would suffice, and no-one would suspect that something was amiss. Specifically, a Keyblade Master.

--------------------

Kairi bit her lip as she scanned the faces in the crowd. It was nearly midnight, and---

"You're worried, aren't you?" Riku said calmly from beside her. "Don't give me that face; nobody lies to me, you know."

She tore her indignant gaze from the platinum-haired Wielder and heaved a sigh. No matter how much she hated him, he _had_ still been a close friend, and no matter how hard she tried to supress her concern, it still found ways to show itself. Like how cold her hands were right now. It _was_ nice how Riku's hand was warm, though. She gave his palm a squeeze.

"It's just..." she trailed off, her heart pounding badly. If Sora walked through those arches and saw her holding Riku's hand, not to mention his arm wound around her shoulders, to say he'd be pissed off was a great understatement.

But still...she was pissed off at him _more_. She didn't know if her broken heart had a place for him anymore. After he left her for his stupid _duty_... It still hurt, like an arrow through the chest.

"I told you once, and I'm not going to tell you again: Sora can take care of himself."

"That's comforting," she replied sarcastically. The Wielder had gone missing for almost two hours now, and no-one had any idea where he was. Actually, if you'd ask her, she'd rather no-one would find him and bring him back---

Her breath hitched in her throat, like so many times before, in so many instances like this. Sometimes she had been so cruel and sarcastic and angry in general, and she felt like she had no control over what was happening, like some other side of her had come forth and wrenched the control from her. But other sides and voices in their head was Sora's specialty; she supposed she had been feeling mad because of _his_ stupidity. And insensitiveness. Her anger flared up at the memory of him laughing at her.

Riku smirked knowingly. "You---"

He was cut off by a sudden hush that spread from the Audience Hall; and eerie silence blanketed the crowd. Kairi's heart pounded harder as the King ran into the front of his throne, panting slightly as he did so. The clearing of his throat echoed throughout the walls and the ceiling.

"Is that...is that blood...?" One of the guests whispered to her neighbor, horrified. Kairi squinted, it looked like the natural design of his clothes to her, but the idea of blood on His Majesty's clothes made her imagination run wild...

"Do not worry about these...stains..." King Mickey said clearly, pausing to glance down his spattered clothes. "Heartless have been straining to get into the perimeter of the Castle. Anyway, I am sad to say that Wielder Sora---"

Kairi resisted the urge to faint at this point; she was clutching Riku's sleeve in a cold-handed deathgrip. There was something in the King's tone that made her fear the worst.

She was right.

"Sora has decided to continue his crusade to seal all Keyholes to protect this realm of light; I fear he shall no longer be joining us tonight--" the King announced, cutting his sentence off as if he had something to say, but suddenly decided not to say it.

"He..." Her voice failed her as tears sprang to her eyes.

"He did _not_ do that..." Riku's voice came, clearly shocked.

She choked on her words, and emotion was building up in her chest, in her _heart_, and it was threatening to tear her apart all over again.

"H-he didn't---didn't even say---_goodbye_," her voice broke, unshed tears finally breaking free of her control as she sobbed into Riku's comforting embrace.

--------------------

_Buddyboy hey! buddyboy hey!_

Right now, Sora's mind felt like it had been thrown in a dryer and spun around for a good twenty-four hours on the highest speed.

_Buddyboy hey! buddyboy hey! _his Antiform was chanting, gleefully reminding him that _yes, _he was still alive, and _yes_, the pain he was feeling right now was excruciating, to say the very least.

The turn of events (well, most of which that he had seen through his hazy vision) had been harrowing. Somehow, his Antiform had gained the ability to get out of Sora's control, and he had proven to be a deadly adversary. The pain caused by a Keyblade stuck in his back proved testament to _that_.

_Look, Xemnie's vewy mad...he can't touch me without killing you! No one can!_ he cackled. Sora winced involuntarily as the Sorcerers gingerly lifted him onto their magical boxes (or something that looked remotely like that). Xemnas had summoned a portal, by the looks of it, and they were certainly headed for the Castle That Never Was.

Pain shot through his arm as he tried to lift a hand to catch the Nobodies' attention. If Antiform broke loose in a world completely made of darkness...Sora had no intention of imagining what he would do, because his head hurt enough as it is.

_Oh no Sora, I'm not letting go of ya...You're my sanctuary!_

His breath hitched painfully as he realized Antiform was right; no-one dare attack Antiform because they'd have to kill Sora first. And as far as he knew, none of them _would_ kill him, even if he pleaded them to.

Only one option was plausible.

"There, quick," Xemnas' panicked voice cut through his thoughts.

He forced his eyelids open and immediately shut them again. Really. Xemnas should have a new favorite color other than blinding white. He felt himself being laid onto something that seemed like a bed. He swallowed a mouthful of blood and made his choice. Antiform must go before he caused any more havoc.

_Aww, I'm no trouble at all!_

Sora snapped his eyes open only to find a startled Xemnas staring down at him. The silver-haired Nobody turned to go; black strands were already rising from the floor. Sora grabbed the nearest part of Xemnas he could reach, which was, thankfully, his wrist.

His mind was actually intending to say "I must get rid of the darkness inside me!" but his mouth had decided not to cooperate, making his words come out as "Must...get rid...darkness---", punctuated by a thin ribbon of blood trickling down his chin. His lungs rattled; it felt like crushed soda cans were scraping together inside his chest.

Xemnas looked alarmed. "I need to get help. You shall die if---"

_Exactly my point_, he thought grimly as he cut Xemnas off. "Y-yes, I will, I need to..." he trailed off as he struggled to take in another breath. Antiform had stopped laughing, presumably because of what Sora was intending to do.

"..."

Xemnas looked bewildered, and Sora gritted his teeth. He was _not_ that dense not to understand what Sora was trying to get across, was he?

"_Antiform_," he said raggedly, staring up into amber eyes. Xemnas recoiled slightly.

"You _will_ get Antiform under control," he said hastily, finally finding his voice. "Just let me get Vexen and--"

"No!" Why didn't he understand? He _can't_ get his Dark Side under control; ever since Roxas had unmerged with him, Antiform was whispering in his head all the time, and he _couldn't _do anything about it! He had already lost it once; it must never happen again! The darkness in his heart is absolute, and he cannot risk hurting anyone else! _He can't risk hurting the ones he love! He can't risk hurting Kairi!_

Antiform giggled. _Kairi this, Kairi that. What the hell is wrong with you? She broke _your_ heart, why not break hers? C'mon, I know you want to..._

Sora made to shake his head, and was rewarded with a grating noise and excruciating pain. "Xemnas, he dies if I do, and I m-must do my duty---"

_Uhuh you don't have the guts to do this,_ Antiform said, but Sora could hear a trace of fear and panic in his voice. He smiled.

It was his duty, after all. To protect the realm of light.

Even from himself.

"Payback," he said quietly. He shut his eyes and called on the Keyblade, and he tightened his grip around the cool metal of the Dark Keyblade.

_Sora! You don't want to do this! _Antiform's voice was definitely panicking now, and Sora wanted to laugh at how his Dark Side's grandiose plans to claim Kingdom Hearts would be shattered. He looked up at the 'Superior' of Organization XIII, the one that he had killed almost a year ago, and the one now who intended to save his life.

He had made a lot of mistakes in his life. He hadn't thought about how Nobodies actually _felt_ when Sora attacked them; they were innocent beings stuck in a huge rut, neither light nor darkness, they didn't even truly _live._ Deprived of hearts, and he slayed them indifferently, seeing them as only a threat. Roxas cleared his perspective; and for what he had done, he _was_ truly sorry. He was truly sorry for everything.

Sora drew in a breath. "I made wrong decisions. Now I'm about to undo them in my own way--" his lungs spasmed, making him cough up blood, which he wiped away with his free hand. Xemnas was still frozen with his mouth hanging slightly open. "I'm sorry for everything. Tell Kai and Riku that."

He choked, and tears sprang to his eyes when he thought of his best friend. And his princess. _They_ will understand.

_Riku, Kairi, I'm sorry. _He whispered silently into the air, his words vanishing into darkness that was slowly clouding his vision again.

Xemnas had finally snapped back into his senses, and right now, he was staring down at Sora with a horrified expression. "Wiel--"

"For the greater good," Sora cut him off, smiling beatifically as he raised the Keyblade. Antiform burst into a sound that was between laughing and sobbing. Xemnas' eyes widened.

_This is my duty._

_Kai, I love you. Sorry I can't say goodbye..._

He felt a tear trace down his cheek and mingle with his blood.

"I sacrifice...my heart."

He raised the Dark Keyblade and stabbed himself with precision he had honed for two long years as Keyblade Master. It drove right through his heart. It _was_ sacrifice, after all. He started to choke on the blood that was rapidly filling his mouth, and he coughed uncontrollably, pain making everything blurry. He vaguely heard the Keyblade clatter to the floor as his fingers failed, and Xemnas shouting something. It all started to fade away...

The last thing he heard was Antiform's distraught laughter.

_You idiot! You used the wrong Keyblade!_

And then, finally, silence.

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Sorry for the _long_ delay... I have school, you know. Midterms are coming up, so I'm not sure if I can update _that_ fast.

Anyway...why has none of you told me that review replies are actually _banned_? -sighs- Whatever. Thank you anyway to **darkdude71, Phoenix80Hp, hikari-aozora, FlowerLady-Aerith, DeadlyDragon12, Ellie 0223, **and **Myrr.** Cookies for all!

If you're a Namixas fan like me, please read my other fic **Questioning**, and tell me what you think!

As in Nobody's Perfect, next chapter has no quote. It might spoil the story...

Leave me a review guys! I need motivation to get my writing back in gear! Flames are welcome.


	17. Thirteen Shards

**A/N: **Just a reminder, this is a **Sora x Kairi **fanfic.

**Disclaimer:** Kingdom Hearts (c) Square Enix & Disney.

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--------------------

**XVII: T**_h_**ir**_te**e**n_** S**_har_**ds**

**--------------------**

**-**

"**P**ence!" Olette yelled, trying to snap out the boy of whatever obsession he currently had with his camera. It _was_ three in the morning, and here they were, wondering _why_ Pence would call them...and besides, Olette needed her sleep.

"D'you want me to snap him out of it?" Hayner said from behind her. She looked over her shoulder just in time to see him crack his knuckles threateningly. His brown eyes sparkled with mischief under the orange hue of the twilight sky. She sighed and rolled her eyes; Hayner always thought that violence was _always_ the answer.

"_Pence!_"

"PENCE!"

"Keep _quiet_!" The boy suddenly hissed at them, his round face shining with excitement. "You'll scare her away!"

Olette managed to feel exasperated and giggly at the same time. "Pence, you brought us here to this dump for a _girl?_"

Pence nodded enthusiastically, pointing to one of the Old Mansion's second floor windows. "_That_ girl...the one who's supposed to live in that place, when nobody has occupied it in almost, well, who knows when--"

Hayner muttered something that sounded very much like 'Pence I'm gonna kill you' as he kicked a stray rock into the Mansion's rusty steel gate, making a loud reverbating sound.

"Shhh! Someone might hear us!" She admonished as the blonde boy walked up to her, face dejected.

"Olette, Olette, aside from the fact that it's _way_ too early, we _are_ in the middle of Twilight Woods, and there's no_one_ who can hear us---"

"There she is again!" Pence breathed suddenly. Olette craned her neck and peered in the direction of the camera-boy's pointed finger.

The white curtains were swirling in a nonexistent wind, as usual. She quirked an eyebrow. "Pence... what--_oh_!"

What was unmistakably a hand drew back the curtains, and a face peered out, apparently looking for something on the Mansion grounds. When its gaze landed on the three, however, it quickly retreated, and the curtains were swirling once again.

She held a hand over her chest, feeling her pounding heart. Hayner was whispering 'whoa' over and over again.

Did they just see a ghost? Did they really just prove one of the Seven Wonders of Twilight Town?

"We need sleep," she declared, putting her hands on her hips. She was a rational girl, and she couldn't see _how_ someone could get through the lock that had been installed on the front door of the Mansion (a lock sent by King Mickey himself, who feared for Twilight Town's safety from its alternate-world twin, _that_ adventure surely put Olette's rational side in a loop), much less the _huge_ padlock and chains that bound the front gate.

Pence stared at her, amused. "No, we don't. She might be from that alternate Twilight Town the King said Sora had already sealed--"

"But we don't have any _proof_ that she's actually _there_!" Hayner said frustratedly, running his hands through already upright hair. She heaved a sigh as she gave him a comforting pat on the back (and Hayner immediately stole her hand and wound it around his waist--she giggled even more). What _was_ the use of seeing something you can't prove...?

"Ah, but I have proof right _here_," Pence said loudly, taking something from his pocket and waving it in the air. "You didn't really think that I'd call you guys down here without any proof, didn't you?"

Olette squealed and whipped the photograph from his hands. Hayner was saying something about _his_ sneaking out as he turned to look at the piece of glossy paper.

"Oh. My. God."

The picture had been taken zoomed; Pence had caught an image of a girl standing among the white curtains, a pale hand pressed against the glass as she stared at something unknown outside. She had soft blonde hair that was drawn over a frail shoulder, and she blended almost perfectly among the white curtains, seeing that she wore a white sundress that reached down above her knees and white sandals, added to the fact that she had impossibly pale skin. In fact, the only thing of her that wasn't white was her eyes; they were a color so blue that it almost put the ocean to shame.

It was a very accurate image of what a ghost would look like, in her opinion.

"See? See? We _have_ proof!" Pence did a little jig with his precious camera. Olette felt like dancing too.

Hayner made a derisive noise, and she stared up at him. "Hmmm...I don't know why, but I feel like I've already met her..."

She peered at the girl's visage unbelievingly. "Since when do you meet ghost-girls? You haven't been cheating on me, have you?" she joked, wrinkling her eyebrows. Hayner shook his head and proceeded to stare at the picture in her hand, _his_ hand stroking her mahogany hair absentmindedly.

"Whaddya mean you already met her?" Pence demanded, his arms crossed.

"It means, I already met her," Hayner said, rolling his eyes. Pence gave him a light punch on the arm and laughed.

"I _have_ already met her," Olette said quietly. Both boys turned to stare at her. "Don't you remember, Hayner? We met her and--and whoever her date was at the Halloween Dance..." she trailed off, forcing herself not to laugh at the dawning comprehension on Hayner's face, and the blooming disbelief on Pence's.

"B-but why, of all the places and times, would she go _here_?" Pence gestured vehemently to the white-curtained window. "And _how_ could she get in there in the first place?"

"M-maybe she's _really_ a ghost who just decided to join in the Halloween Dance," Hayner said seriously before bursting into laughter at the expression on the other boy's face.

"Uh_huh_..." Olette smiled. "Looks like we have a mystery on our hands."

---------------------

"**M**ickey, dear."

He looked up into the concerned face of his wife, her forehead furrowed downwards in worry. It was three-past in the morning, and he had still not gone to bed.

"Aren't you going to sleep?"

"I have to read over this treaty," King Mickey lied through his teeth, forcing himself to smile at his wife.

"Well...In that case, I am canceling all of your appointments tomorrow morning," she said, cocking her head thoughtfully. "You're sleeping in, I presume?"

He laughed lightly. "You know me too well."

"I always have," she said gently, shifting her hand to the golden door handle. "I love you."

"I love you too. Goodnight, you need your sleep."

"You too, dear," she yawned, closing the door to the King's Study soundlessly. As soon as the door closed, Mickey groaned softly.

He _knew_ everything was in place, but something called his conscience was bugging him endlessly.

"Good thing she wiped your morning clean, King Mickey, you're going to need it."

He froze. _Why_ did everyone have to make him freeze like that? His heart pounded madly, and the Keyblade coalesced into his hand.

"Show yourself. Shiva?" he asked uncertainly.

"Guess again," a feminine voice laughed softly. She stepped out of the shadows, her amber irises glinting in the cool darkness of the Study.

Mickey gulped.

"Your Majesty, we have a _lot_ to talk about."

--------------------

"**W**ell, at any rate, thank you for bringing Kairi home safely," the Mayor was saying, looking thoughtfully at Riku. "Even if it is about an hour after what _she_ told me and her grandmother that she'd be home."

"_Dad_", Kairi whined, "We couldn't go without saying goodbye to the King!"

"As long as you're safe," he sighed. "Lock up after you."

"Okay."

She and Riku watched her father trudge up the stairs, obviously exhausted from the day's work, and from staying up for Kairi to get home.

"You're lucky I portalled you here," he smirked, turning to the redhead. "Otherwise, you'd be yelled at for coming so home so late."

"You mean, early," she pointed out. "It's one in the morning."

Riku struggled to stop his impending yawn but failed miserably. Kairi giggled from beside him, but she herself yawned ten seconds later. He made to stand up from the couch, but she pulled him back down.

Which, of course, made him blush spectacularly. Hm. He was positively burning, and he looked cuter than ever.

"What...? You scared of being alone or something?"

To his surprise, she nodded. "And anyway, if you go home now, you might get mugged or something."

"_Kairi,_" he said exasperatedly. "I'm a Keyblade _Wielder_."

"I need somebody to vent out my anger on." Yes, she really did, because she was actually _mad_. She was planning on screaming into her pillow later for about an hour or so before sleeping.

"I'm no punching bag---_oof_"

She cut his words short as she pounced on him, intent on squeezing the heck out of him, because right now, it was either squeeze something, or break something. She preferred not having to replace anything, so she decided to use Riku as a cute, squishy stress ball.

"_Kai--"_

Pouting, she let him go. "That's what you get."

"A deadly hug?"

"I couldn't squeeze any harder, so there..ha..."

Riku stared at her. She stared at the floor awkwardly, she _was_ being totally random tonight, and actually, she had no idea why. Hey! He was the one who was random in the first place! She giggled at the thought, and stopped herself. She looked as insane as she already was.

She suddenly felt a hand tipping her face up, and Riku stole a kiss, grinning at her shocked expression."Good night," he whispered in her ear, making a shiver travel down her spine. Leaving her frozen in the middle of the living room, he swiftly made his way out their front door and closed it with a snap.

A smile spread across her face as she put a hand on the doorknob and locked it.

-----------------------

_**H**ahaha!_

"Shut up, you've been laughing for hours now."

_HAHAHA!_ _I take back everything I said. What you just did was the stupidest thing you have **ever** done._

"Shut the hell up."

_Haha!_

"I hate it when you do that," he muttered, burying his face more into the pillow and scrunching up his eyes. It _was_ still dark outside (seen through the huge floor-to-ceiling glass windows), and he usually woke up when the sun streamed onto him mercilessly.

Uh. Since when did he have floor-to-ceiling windows?

Since when did the moon shape itself into a huge heart?

_Since when did his pillow become soaked in blood?_

Sora Hikari's eyes snapped open and he instantly shot up from the bed, biting his lip to prevent the stream of exclamations from pouring forth. Swinging his (bloody) legs over the side he put his head in his hands, his fingers rubbing his temples. What was possibly the most extemely painful headache in natural history was starting to come on.

The memory of a few hours earlier came rushing back to him, making his head throb painfully.

He stabbed himself earlier. He was sure of that. He was supposed to be _dead_. Gasping, he ran his fingers over his chest, where he was pretty sure there was a gaping hole, through which his guts were bleeding out.

Sure, his shirt was torn, and his crown necklace was bloodstained (heck--it seemed that he had taken a bloodbath), but where he supposed the Keyblade had torn into his heart...none. No bruise (after he had wiped the caked blood away--did he really bleed that much?), no scratch, no _nothing_, only pale, unbroken, and as far as he could tell, healthy skin. Not something that had been stabbed earlier.

Hm. He _was_ pretty sure he hadn't dreamed of stabbing himself.

_Because you screwed up_.

"I think I already told you to shut up, Antiform," he snapped, mind, once again, a swirling soup of madness. A bloody sneaker clattered against the Dark Keyblade that lay carelessly on the floor. Sighing, he stretched down to pick it up, feeling irritated with the continous whistling his Antiform had taken to.

He choked on a mouthful of supposed-to-be swallowed blood as he realized something.

Actually, he didn't feel irritated.

In fact, he felt...nothing. Nothing at all. He put a hand to comfort his fluttering heart, and his eyebrows drew down in confusion.

"Oh. Hell, no. No." He held his breath. And held it for about ten minutes before realizing something was definitely wrong here. He _should_ be feeling worried, but strangely, something was amiss. Now, if only his Antiform would stop his infernal whistling, he could concentrate and figure out what had happened.

_I told you, you screwed us up._

"How?" he asked aloud weakly, not caring if anyone else saw him. Actually, he didn't care about anything.

Uhm.

_Won't tell, and I quote, "I think I already taught you to shut up, Antiform,"_ his Heartless side giggled.

He (once he would do it in frustration, but seeing that he had no emotion whatsoever now, he did it because there was simply nothing else to do) ran his left hand through his hair and growled at himself.

"_GAH_!" Sora yelled, renewed pain shooting through his scalp, feeling very much like someone had dragged razor-sharp nails into channels of skin on his head. He scrubbed away the warm stream of blood slowly trailing down between his eyes. And froze.

He held up a pitch-black left hand whose nails were dripping with blood. _His own hand_.

_NOW, do you believe you screwed us up, HUH?_

Sora bit his lip and stalked out of the room, Antiform laughing an explanation in his head as he went.

--------------------

**R**iku, once again, was jolted awake by the feeling of something _resonating_ throughout Kingdom Hearts. That had been happening a lot lately.

He shut his eyes, trying to ignore the pounding of his heart.

Sora had gone once again, without insomuch as a goodbye... What was he playing at?

The King's announcement echoed in his memory. _"Heartless have been straining to get into the perimeter of the Castle. Anyway, I am sad to say that Wielder Sora---"_

He was jolted awake once again, and welcomed the feel of his Way To The Dawn's cold metal under his fingers.

Heartless shed **no** blood, and as far as he could see, King Mickey was in **no** way wounded.

_**Whose blood was on his hands?**_

--------------------

"**O**kay, okay, I get it, but I screwed _you_ up, hah!" Sora muttered happily as he walked the Castle's hallways, opening every door he came across. Which wasn't the best technique, he had to say, since he had almost gotten killed twice, one on account of a avalanche of fluffy bedroom slippers, the second on account of an avalanche of movie spheres, which, from the looks of it, documented all the blackmail material the Organization kept for each other. _That_ he could understand, but the fluffy bedroom slippers? Sure, the chocobo one was cute, but he just couldn't imagine one of the big, bad, Thirteenth Order wearing _those_.

Okay, so maybe he could picture Roxas wearing a pair. But still...

Once he had come across a woman's mask connected to tubing floating in a canister of some sort, and thankfully, he had the sense not to touch it. The label 'Jenova Project' rang a faint bell in his head. Something in World History told him it was very dangerous to mess with it, no matter how harmless it seemed.

He heard voices, thankfully, not in his head, but in the corridors, from behind a door. Holding his breath, he put a gloved hand on the doorknob and opened the white door.

"Is anyone in---"

Thirteen faces stared at him in shock, weapons in hand. Xemnas, whose hand was raised towards a ring of sabers, looked ready to faint. Roxas' mouth was working soundlessly.

"Okay. Is this a bad time?"

He cringed, both at himself and Antiform's sudden burst of laughter. From the stunned looks on their faces, this didn't qualify as a good time, that's for sure. Roxas' blue eyes went as wide as they can possibly go as he backed away, tripping over a stray lance as he went.

_"_I take that this is definitely not a good time."

Axel (from what Sora could remember, his name _was_ Axel, and he had actually asked him if he had gotten it memorized) suddenly grinned. "You _should_ take a bath."

Sora glanced down at himself, and at the bloody sneaker-shaped footprints he had left in his wake. He had just made one hell of a bloody mess, that's for sure. "Sorry for the mess. I'll clean it up later--"

"Sora. Uhm."

He looked up at Roxas, who was staring at him (not much unlike the twelve other people in the room) intently. He realized why they were staring. Staring as if he was a bloody axe murderer who had come to chop them up into tiny pieces and feed them to his pet cat Twinky. "I can explain."

"Please," Xemnas spoke up, gesturing to an empty chair.

Now Sora, being so much unlike his messy self, declined the offer, not wanting to stain anything else with red. Although he would dearly like to brighten up the Castle That Never Was, he'd like to do so with paint, not his own blood. "Uh, okay. Where should I start?"

"Maybe with the fact that you're half-Heartless would help?" Roxas said in a voice that hovered between glee and fright.

"Okay, with that," he shoved his hands into his pockets sheepishly, recalling what his Antiform had told him what happened. "I was half-delirious with pain, okay? It didn't occur to me that the Dark Keyblade wasn't exactly the suicide tool of choice.(at this point, Antiform snorted) So anyway, I stabbed myself, and then released all thirteen shards of my heart, I suppose, to you guys, seeing that you are the closest--"

"Question!" Axel's hand shot upwards. "If I may ask, _how_ exactly did your heart get broken into exactly _thirteen_ shards?" he asked shrewdly.

Sora shrugged. Even _he_ didn't know why. It was weird, though, having the number of the shards of his broken heart correspond exactly to the number of people in Organization XIII. "I can tell you Kai broke my heart, but I can't tell you why thirteen."

His gaze strayed to the marble tabletop, the sound of another blonde Nobody scribbling with something that looked like a black Sharpie.

"Anyhow that happened. When I released my heart, I was supposed to turn completely Heartless, wasn't I?"

They nodded (well, Xaldin slightly inclined his head, while Xigbar banged his head up and down, and so on, but they all still nodded).

" Well, there was a problem," he jerked a thumb towards Roxas, who slightly recoiled, most likely from the disturbingly sharp fingernail pointed towards him.

The blonde Nobody stared at him for a full five minutes before comprehension dawned on his face. "You already _have_ a Nobody."

"Yes, I do. A new Nobody can't be created, I suppose. Only one Nobody per heart, I think. So I think Kingdom Hearts _had_ to do something...I released my heart, or a part of it, to Roxas."

"So technically that means--" The blonde with the black Sharpie started, looking up from his scientific (it looked painfully like Lifestream Physics to Sora) vandalism on the table. Roxas finished his sentence for him.

"You're the Nobody now."

Sora nodded enthusiastically. "And half-Heartless. Don't worry, I have him under control. I think so."

_The hell you do! _Antiform roared, then laughed inanely.

"Okay, I get it," Xigbar (honestly, he's _such_ an old dude) spoke loudly, leaning on the backrest of Sharpie-wielding Nobody's seat. "That's why we can actually feel."

"Yep, because you have my heart."

"Why do I get the feeling," A brunette Nobody asked, leaning over Larxene's shoulder, "that you're actually _happy _about this?"

"Because you got what you want, didn't you?" Sora smiled, running a clawed hand through his spikes. "You have my heart. Not to brag, but it's the most powerful tool Kingdom Hearts has to offer."

_Hell yeah! Almost had it, if it weren't for King Mick-o!_

"I'll kill him, I swear," he whispered under his breath. Roxas stared at him with a funny look on his face.

"So we have the shards of _your_ heart?" Xemnas asked weakly, the sabers in the air wobbling dangerously.

Sora nodded. "It's like a breather, you know, until I find you guys your own hearts---"

"Ah. So that is the reason why I have dreamt of Princess Kairi on a pirate ship of some sort," the Sharpie Nobody remarked. Sora felt his cheeks heat up, both from embarassment and anger. Embarassment because, _come on_, it was _his_ memories they had dreamt about! (supposedly, judging from the general whispers of agreeement around the table) Anger, because...he was only_ remembering_ how to feel angry, how to feel embarassed...

The empty feeling was horrible, to say the very least.

"M-maybe because she was the one who broke my heart, so that's why thirteen shards of memory--" he reasoned out loud, staring, puzzled, at the Nobody. "If I may ask, who are you?"

"Maybe. I do have to conduct an experiment," he grinned toothily. "I am Vexen."

"Experiment?" Sora laughed weakly, not liking the predatory look on Vexen's face. Not at all.

He suddenly remembered the first time he met these people (they were now, weren't they? Now that they had their hearts, or shards, whatever). Oh yeah. They had tried to kill him. Esecially Larxene, who had grown out her hair---

_Cripes, nobody grows hair _that_ fast._

THEY. TRIED. TO. KILL. HIM.

He knew that this would be one hell of an experience. Sighing resignedly, he took a step forward into the questions of Organization XIII.

Hey! He was still damn good with his Keyblade if they did anything funny.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N: **Bit short, no? Come _on_ people, did you really think I'd let Sora out of the Grand Plot _that_ quickly?

Is Riku _that_ dense not to know whose blood was on King Mickey's hands?

Who's talking to King Mickey?

You should know by now.

No quote, because I'm too lazy to write the next chapter.

Thank you to** Phoenix80hp **(NO Sora has had enough happiness to last a century), **darkdude71**(ahh...Riku shall go berserk, as soon as he figures it out), **Ellie0223** (careful on the cookies--they're choking hazards), **Embyrflame** (The Nobodies' side of the story is in **Nobody's Perfect**), **FlowerLady-Aerith (**sorry I made you sad...), **DREAMER1389** (thanks for the Story alert, yeah), **Skitty 2004**(still confused? Just say so),** Starlight-x**(yeah...poor Sora XD) and **hikari-aozora**(cookies for you! XD).

-cough--cough- I think that're review replies...but they're in the author's note! That doesn't count, right? Right?

PLEASE REVIEW GUYS! So many hits...yet so few reviewers...I feel so sad...

Read and review...pretty please? Flamers are welcome to torch my writing skills...


	18. Heartless

**A/N: **I started this a SoKai, and I _will_ finish it a SoKai. Patience, people.

_Am I dead or alive? C'mon make up your mind!_

Shut it, Sora. You're halfway. You're a Nobody. You're a Heartless. Any more things you'd like to waste my time with?

_My head hurts. Badly. I need a Cura._

Cura will kill you. Or so I say.

_I hate you so much._

I hate you more. At least Riku doesn't complain.

_So what? I'm not Riku._

Anyway, forget Sora. Don't get me wrong, I love Riku, but all of us has been...infatuated with someone, no? I want to make them all more human. That's why I wanted to write this fic. Oh, and I also wanted to test whether I'm a humor or a drama writer. Whatever.

I repeat, I **will**finish this a SoKai, happy or tragic ending, I **_will_** finish it a SoKai.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Kingdom Hearts. Yes. You _do_ get my point after seventeen chapters of saying this, don't you?

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-------------------

**XVIII: H**ea**rt**_le**s**s_

------------------

**P**anting, Riku straightened himself up, careful not to make too much noise (as he dusted imaginary dust from his shoulders--he's used to the whole dramatic entrance thing) as he stumbled out of the Corridors. Abstinence from using portalling for a year had made his skill a bit rusty (forget the whole portalling-into-an-unsuspecting-crowd-of-preschool-children-and-making-them-run-for-their-lives incident), but this night called for drastic measures.

He berated himself for not realizing it sooner, and if anything happened to Sora because _he_ was too late---

Okay. No violence Riku, no violence.

He sprinted across the carpeted corridors, his Keyblade at the ready. Ready to pry out what happened out of King Mickey. Riku didn't care if he was the damn _King_, if he had harmed Sora in any way, he's so dead.

Riku sniffed.

There was a faint scent of _mouse_ in the air, and like the Wielder-sniffing bloodhound that Sora had always likened him to, he followed it across the Colonnade. He stopped in front of the door to the Library.

He put a hand on the handle, not really paying attention to the fact that there was another very faint scent in the air, because he was just about to confront the King, and he needed all the concentration he could get.

Taking a deep and angry breath, he push the door open.

"King Mi---"

"_Holy!_"

Everything went black.

------------------------

**K**ing Mickey looked up from where the overhead light reflected from the platinum hair on the floor that belonged to a very unconscious Riku.

"Do you really have to do that?" he asked, furrowing his forehead.

Not only Riku was sprawled on the floor, but a passed-out Captain of the Guards, an asleep Royal Magician, two Brooms, and three Court Advisers. Mickey wrinkled his nose at the way Donald's foot was shoved against Goofy's snout.

She smirked. "I don't want to be disturbed."

"But they--"

"They'll wake up wherever they came from, and think that all of this is a very vivid dream, I'll see to that."

He snorted derisively. "Riku won't fall for such a thing."

"_Really_, Majesty, you _should_ know the capabilities of my powers by now. After all, you and that wretched Ansem--"

"Do _not_ talk about him that--"

"Shut up, or I will shut you up."

He fell silent, wishing very much that his Keyblade was clenched in his hand. But she'd probably incapacitate him in the time it took to flex his fingers.

"Now, King Mickey, where were we before such a rude interruption...? Ah , yeah, about the Reports..."

Mickey sighed, staring blankly at the sheaf of papers in front of him. His gaze flickered to the protective case that once held the Dark Keyblade, preventing its extreme darkness from seeping out and overwhelming the Cornerstone (which, he remembered, he still had to Enable). No mortal could take it out except for a Wielder.

It had been missing ever since he had left Sora in Xemnas' care.

He gulped nervously. If the Court caught news of what he had done, he's a dead mouse. What exactly did he do to deserve this?

She tutted. "You killed Sora. He's nothing more than a bunch of light and darkness right now; he's as dead as a walking corpse."

He gritted his teeth, a stream of very obscene words flowing through his mind.

"I can hear you cursing me."

"I know," he smiled painfully.

-----------------------

"**O**kay. You aren't going to kill me?"

"Depends," Axel said, shrugging. (and shifting his shoulder slightly--letting a very quiet Larxene sit comfortably while leaning on his shoulder) "If you piss off the wrong guy, you might just end up dead."

"Not that I'm alive, anyway." Sora said, sighing (for the dramatic effect, since his emotions have been pretty much nonexistent since three hours ago) as he shifted his position in his chair slightly. Demyx (or as Antiform said, mullet-kid) had unexpectedly drenched him with ice-cold water sometime between Xigbar proposing Sora to be number XIV (or something like that, the eyepatched Nobody spread his 'dude's' far too thickly for Sora to comprehend what he was saying) and Vexen asking Xemnas permission to drug Sora and conduct, as he put it, 'educationally beneficial testing of my hypothesis'. Now instead of being covered and dripping in blood, he was covered and dripping in ice water.

Okay, he didn't like the look on Vexen's face when Sora complained he didn't exactly relish the feeling of water being dumped unceremoniously on his head.

"Let's go through this again," he muttered as he propped up his elbows on table. "You--you're Xemnas."

The silver-haired Nobody nodded stiffly, as if he still couldn't believe he had gotten a heart.

_Yeah, frickin' right you are there._

"Xigbar, Xaldin--"

Dreadlocks were never Sora's thing, not when said owner had tried his best to throw him off a bridge at Beast's Castle. Well, he did say he was sorry.

"Uhm...Vexen (he paused at this point, not wanting to see the gleam in the Nobody's eye), Lexaeus, Zexion."

A well-built man(understatement!) with hair that looked as if it had been electrocuted into something that vaguely looked like sun's rays grinned at his name, raising a hand in greeting. At least _he _did something. Zexion seemed to be staring at Larxene as if he had never seen her before.

Xemnas had told Sora that these were the two members were the ones who actually forced Riku to revert to Ansem, and Sora would have been pissed off, if he had any emotions left, so Sora just sighed and let them be (Lexaeus with murmuring next Friday's menu, and Zexion with ogling Larxene).

"You guys are Ansem the Wise's (Xemnas' cough would have been much, much more convincing if Xigbar, Xaldin and Lexaeus hadn't coughed at the same time) helpers, right?" he asked.

"We'd prefer apprentices, thank you," Xaldin snapped.

"Whatever. Okay. Saïx, do you know I hate you?"

The said blue-haired berserker grinned toothily. "Naturally."

Sora grinned back. Having no emotions opened a whole lot of possibilities, that he had just realized. "And do you know that the pointy ears are seriously cool?"

If possible, Saïx grinned wider.

Sora turned his gaze over to the now grinning-like-mad-because-Larxene-is-leaning-on-him pyromaniac dubbed 'Flurry of Dancing Flames'. "Axel, I've got your name memorized already... Demyx--"

Larxene whimpered and buried her face in her folded arms. Now not only Zexion stared, but the whole Organization XIII stared at her amusedly.

"Demyx, Melodious Nocturne, _please_ next time you want to give me a bath, tell me first--"

Said number Nine grinned as he patted Larxene awkwardly on the back, oblivious to the murderous glares of Axel, Marluxia, and Zexion.

"--and no matter what anyone says, you're on hell of a fighter (it _was_ true, after Sora killed him at the castle gates of Hollow Bastion he had been a bit weary of large bodies of water), stop grinning, your face will split. Luxord..."

A neatly ordered man with a funny accent nodded regally, his hands shuffling yet another pack of cards rapidly. Where he hid all those decks, Sora had only one logical idea: up his black sleeves. How they stayed up there (Sora squinted, his current deck had a particularly naughty---o_kay_.) ? He may never well know.

"Marluxia--"

A brunette (he says it's brunette, but Sora thinks it's still a bit pink) looked up at him briefly and quirked a smile before resuming to glare daggers at poor Demyx. Hm. Maybe he had a crush on Larxene. That was very plausible now, since he actually had a heart to feel with. Or shard of heart. Whatever.

"...Larxene. Uh, can I ask you something?"

"What?" number Six, Eight, and Eleven asked simultaneously, before proceeding to shoot death glares at each other.

"I'm asking Larxene," he pointed out. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Roxas stuff his fist in his mouth to keep from laughing out loud.

"What, Wielder?" the blonde asked tiredly, shifting her head up on her palms.

"Uhm." Sora considered asking why she had burst into tears earlier, but decided against it, he didn't want to Fade because of a dangerously pink scythe or twin chakrams or whatever Zexion used. He cleared his throat. "Your hair...I think the last time I saw it---"

"It's _not_ my hair. It's my Other's. I'm reverting to Arlene."

"You're _what_?" Axel yelled, making her wince and cover her ears. For some reason Zexion scooted over and nudged Axel, placing his hands protectively on Larxene's shoulders. Snarling, Marluxia brushed said hands off and threatened to cut them permanently.

"Cripes. I said, I think I'm turning to Arlene!" Larxene flushed before burying her face in her arms again.

""I think' is way different than 'I am'," Sora pointed out, but his voice was lost over the now very loud and looking to be very much violent shouting match between Marluxia and Zexion.

"I told you, get your hands off her!" Marluxia hissed.

"What, does she belong to you?" Zexion hissed back.

"D'you think she belongs to _you_ then?"

Zexion took a step forward, staring the brunette in the eye, who recoiled slightly. "Mar--"

"Okay, okay, I think she belongs to nobody," Axel cut in, eyeing the two of them. "Marluxia, stop acting like you want her to be your girlfriend (Sora was not the only one who choked in disbelief), because she obviously doesn't. Zexion, stop acting like she's _already_ your girlfriend, because she's just not. Go back to being your normal emo self, would--"

"Then stop acting like you're her knight in shining armor," Zexion said coldly.

"I am NOT. N-O-T, got it memorized?"

"Thank you, Axel, but I can spell words fine on my own."

Marluxia smirked, folding his hands over his chest as he stepped between the bickering men and Larxene.

Sora rolled his eyes. Giving a heart to these people was like feeding a forest fire or something. He walked over to his Other (he _was_ the Nobody now, right? So technically Sora's the Other Side now), who was now watching the fight, entranced.

"Rox."

"Roxas."

"RO--"

The blonde blinked and shivered. "Sora?" he asked, staring up at him for a split second before averting his gaze.

"What?"

"You haven't seen yourself, haven't you?"

He paused.

_Hoo boy, you're in for one hell of a surprise._

"No."

Roxas' brows furrowed, his hands playing absentmindedly with his black sleeve. "You...you should stay here in the Castle, at least for tonight."

"Why? Riku and Kairi are probably sick with worry right now."

"The King had seen to that detail, " Xemnas' face loomed out of the darkness, making the both of them jump.

"Stop sneaking up on me like that," Sora said angrily, his Keyblade (his stomach flipped over; it was _still_ the Dark Keyblade, only with much, much more blood than usual) coalescing in his clenched fist. "And what do you mean, has seen to that detail?"

"He had forseen that you might need a...rest from the spotlight," he replied, a smile curving his lips slightly as he stared Sora up and down.

"Hell yeah he does!" Roxas exclaimed. "He gets stabbed!"

But Sora wasn't listening. There was this gut feeling that King Mickey had done something drastic. His eyes widened.

"WHAT THE HELL DOES KING MICKEY HAVE TO DO WITH THIS?" he roared.

The room fell silent.

Sora looked for an answer in the silent faces around him. Roxas suddenly found his hands very interesting. Sora felt like shaking his Other violently until he got an answer. Antiform was laughing, as usual.

_You are too dense, buddyboy!_

"ANSWER ME!"

He snarled at the unbroken blanket of silence that covered them. His left hand flexed unconsciously, itching to tear through something alive.

"I SAID---"

"Sora." Luxord spoke up. "To summarize, it was actually because of him that this had happened in the first place."

He felt his knees falter as Luxord continued explaining, with almost all the other members adding something along the way.

King Mickey had decided to make him swear fealty not only to the Court, but to the Light as well.

He _knew_ it would most likely kill Sora, yet he took the chance.

Kairi had tainted the Keyblade with darkness.

Instead of taking Sora to his friends when he was near death, the King had chosen to leave him with Xemnas, well away from the castle.

"How do I know you tell the truth?" Sora demanded angrily, not wanting to believe anything that they had said. He _trusted_ King Mickey. With his life even. He left his life on the islands for the King's letter, for crying out loud.

"We offer no proof but what is currently happening now to you," Xemnas said simply.

Sora fell to his knees, faith and trust shattered.

King Mickey thought him an expendable Court subject. He was being used.

Oh, God.

_Buddyboy, would saying I TOLD YOU SO help?_

Sora gritted his teeth, not able to stop his left hand from clawing through the marble floor, leaving a rough indentation.

_Yeah, I didn't think so_. He laughed again. Stupid Antiform. Always laughing.

But Sora was a Wielder, and Wielders didn't usually break down like that, especially when you're a Wielder with nonexistent emotions running through your veins.

Besides, he's practically dead. Nothing much worse than that.

"I'm gonna go home now." He stated flatly.

"No!" Roxas yelled suddenly. "I-I mean--"

"The King has instructed me to send you to him as soon as you are completely recovered," a very calm-looking Xemnas said.

"Who gives a damn about him, anyway?" Sora breathed angrily. "Why do _you_ care, Xemnas? He was the one who told me to kill the Organization in the first place."

"We--"

"I don't have time for this..." Sora huffed. "Nice seeing you guys, but I have school on Monday."

He spun around on his heel, wondering if he could get back to Destiny Islands before lunch. Roxas caught his wrist in a clammy hand.

"Sora! You can't!"

"Why the hell not?"

"You---uh, you need to rest! You've been stabbed twice tonight!" He exclaimed frantically.

"I'm fine." Well, considering that he has still sore in places, and his scalp had decided to start bleeding again, he _was_ fine. Really.

"No you're not, " Roxas said triumphantly. "Xemnas said the King'll take care of everything, so you don't have to worry about Riku and Kairi worrying."

"I don't care, I want to go home."

"You need to wash up, at the very least," Vexen coughed, exchanging glances with Xemnas.

Sora stared down his shirt. Well, he had a point. He felt an incoming sneeze, really, Demyx shouldn't have dumped water on him. Now he felt a cold coming on. Thank you, Demyx.

"I guess..."

"Third door on the right."

Sora trudged out of the meeting room, remembering he _still_ did have to scrub the floor.

"One of my coats are there! The one on the far left, okay!" Roxas called out after him.

-------------------

"**R**iku, hey, wake up!"

"Mmah..."

"RIKU!"

Kairi giggled as she watched Riku literally fall out of his bed in surprise. He stared indignantly at her. "What _are_ you doing here? And _how_ did you get here---"

"I told you guys to change your lock, I jimmied it again," she said mischievously.

"You should stop doing that."

She laughed, plopping herself down on his comforter. He backed away slightly as suspicion bloomed in his aquamarine eyes.

"Oh come on, Riku, you don't sleep late on a Sunday..." she whined. "I want to go out."

"You _could_ always go out on a Sunday," he said cautiously.

"Not alone!"

"There's Selphie. Or you could just call Naminé. Or the tons of girlfriends you have in your phonebook."

"Are you trying to get rid of me?"

"Yeah."

"You are _so_ evil!" She exclaimed, hiding her hurt expression behind a smile. He wasn't laughing.

"I don't think you're..." Riku trailed off, sitting down beside her and staring at the floor.

She sighed. "Listen to me. Sora left, without even a word. He doesn't care about us, his friends, anymore. He's exchanged us for something else...I hate him for that."

"Kai, you don't mean that!"

It was true; she could never hate Sora. Sora would always and forever hold a part of her heart. But what about the rest that he didn't occupy? If she let herself dwell on him, she knew she'd become a recluse, never wanting anyone to interfere with her sorrow. She didn't like making anyone else sad. She _needed_ to move on. Her mind told her to, and her heart was slowly conceding.

She didn't need Naminé to make her forget a certain brunette. She lived in the present; Kairi Dalmasca never did dwell on her past. She told herself never to. The fact that she had no memory of her past helped.

"Okay, so I don't hate him. But I can't dwell on him forever, Riku..." she breathed. "My heart would break."

Screw the fact that she most certainly broke Sora's heart. But knowing him, he's bipolar enough to forget in a day what she had done.

She certainly hoped he didn't.

"You're such a crybaby," he teased suddenly. Kairi sniffed harder, leaning on Riku's shoulder.

She loved Sora, that she knew. She loved someone she could never have.

Hm. Maybe she could learn to love someone more...reachable.

Maybe.

She hoped she couldn't.

She was hoping for a lot of things today.

----------------------

"**O**h. Oh. _Aaaaaah!_"

Sora frantically tried to calm a near-hysterical Naminé down, who had just happened to open the bathroom door as he was zipping up one of Roxas' coats. It _was_ actually nice to know that the coats were part of a set; the black muscle shirt and the equally black pants fit him perfectly (not to mention the pair of black boxers--what was it with Nobodies and dressing in a single color?), as did Roxas' coat. It did help that they were exactly the same size, yes?

"Get the _hell_ away from me!" she screeched as Sora reached out to calm her down.

"_Naminé!_ What is it!"

"How did a... a _something_ like you get in here!" she continued screeching, backing out into the corridor.

The bathroom he had just stepped out of had only the _tacks_ of a mirror; he had never seen a bathroom with _no_ mirrors in his entire life. Heck, even Disney Castle (Antiform made a derisive noise) had mirrors in their restrooms (gilded even). So Sora paused. That was pretty insulting. Did he look _that_ bad?

_Hell yeah!_

"Shut it Antiform," he muttered. He _really_ sucked when it came to comforting girls. "Naminé, what are going on about? It's me! Sora!"

"_It TALKS! It FREAKIN' TALKS!"_ she said dramatically, summoning a ring of Dusks. "Kill it!" she shrieked the order.

"NAM!"

He spun around and gasped in relief as he saw Roxas sprinting towards them.

"ROXAS! IT'S GOING TO KILL ME!" the blonde girl cried. Sora put his hands over his ears; he didn't know sweet, quiet Naminé possessed a voice loud enough to shatter his eardrums.

Roxas struggled to stop panting enough to be able to say something coherently. "N-N-Naminé, he's not going to--"

"Sure as hell no," Sora cut in, staring amusedly at the red color of Roxas' face. Whether from sprinting or from the way Naminé clung to his waist, Sora had no idea.

"WHAT!"

"It's me. Sora. Remember?"

Naminé's big blue eyes stared back at him in fright. She whimpered and buried her face in Roxas' shoulder.

"Man, have you looked in the mirror yet?" Roxas asked. What scared Sora was the tone his Other used: a mixture of pity and fright.

"How could I? Mirror's broken in the stupid bathroom... Anyway, why should--"

"Sora? Is...is that really you?" Naminé ventured timidly, clutching the front of Roxas' coat in a deathgrip.

"Yeah," he confirmed, raking his hair (and his scalp in the process--damn, he should stop doing that). He once again felt warm blood down his forehead.

She fainted. Roxas caught her instantly as he knelt on the floor, cradling the girl's slight frame gently in his arms.

"Jeez. Is she going to be okay?" he asked, concerned.

The blonde nodded. "She's just...in shock. I guess. I'm going to take her to our room now--"

Sora snorted.

Roxas looked disgusted as his cheeks flamed up. "We _share_ a room. SHARE!"

"Whatever," he snickered, grinning widely.

"You have blood on your face again," he pointed out, still red in the face. "Maybe you should ask Vexen to stitch you up."

"Uh. No thanks."

"If you need any help, my--_our_ room is on the fifth floor, Right Wing. With XIII on front."

"Obviously."

Roxas shook his head hopelessly and portalled out. Chuckling, he stepped around the bewildered Dusks (actually, he didn't need to do so, the Dusks made way for him. Strange) and walked back to the bathroom, closing the door and walking down the corridor back to the meeting room. He'd just realized that he'd _have _ to wait for his clothes to dry (after using Marluxia's special floral-scented all natural fabric conditioner and stain remover--almost empty, which made him think exactly _what _stains do those coats get). He couldn't go back to the islands with a black coat on, could he? Riku'll probably kill him on the spot. Also, on the account of the black-clawed-left-arm situation, he _still_ has to figure out a way to return it to normal.

After all, when he said he was half-Heartless, it was in a very figurative sense, not a physical one. He had no intention of looking like he got dunked in black paint, thank you very much.

_Oh, that's _so _insulting, Sowwa._

Jeez, one black, clawed arm wasn't _that_ scary for Naminé to faint like that. And why hadn't Roxas portalled instead of sprinting...? Sora supposed it has more heroic than just suddenly appearing. Besides, it'll probably give Naminé a heart attack. Not that she had a heart to begin with. Hm.

He pushed the meeting room door open, poking his head in. "Hey, Xemnas?"

The silver-haired Nobody jerked from his trance-like state of bewilderment. "Wielder."

"You have an extra room I can catch up on sleep in?"

"I'll take him!" Larxene's voice floated out. A very flustered blonde strode over to him. She looked positively heavenly, in Sora's opinion.

Okay. Sora, bad thoughts.

He loved Kairi, and he'd remain faithful to her, even if she shattered his heart into thirteen little shiny shards. Even if she was the one who was actually the reason why he wasn't focused enough on controlling Antiform. Call him a hopeless loser, but he loves her. Get over it.

_Uh, you've forgotten one teensy little thing...YOU CAN'T FEEL ANYMORE._

Hm. Antiform was right about that. But Roxas obviously liked Naminé...

_Because of you two. He loves the blondie 'cause you love Kairi...Ew. What is it with you and love, anyway? Ew._

"Sora, let's go. Now." Larxene said in a very final tone, grabbing him by the (non-clawed) hand and leading him to a portal. Sora had the sneaking suspicion that he had just been the target of three different death glares.

Now, the Corridors were a somewhat huge place. Sora had just begun letting his jaw drop open when Larxene pulled him out.

"Here you are," she said in a cheerful voice, which, coming from Larxene, sounded positively terrifying.

"Uhm. Okay."

"See you around, Wielder."

"No way. I'm going home straight after my clothes dry out."

Larxene eyed him and smiled in a very sadistic way, flipping a stray hair over her shoulder. "Not so sure about that," she smirked, before portalling out.

Sora stared at the spot where the portal had vanished.

There's no way on earth he's going to stay here with thirteen psychopaths longer than he absolutely has to.

Sighing, he turned and faced the door that the blonde had taken him to. Surprisingly, it was next to a door with a golden XIII engraved on it.

"Perfect. Just damn perfect," he muttered under his breath. "Organization XIV sounds so wrong."

He opened the door and went inside, taking off his boots as he went. The room was identical to Xemnas', aside from the fact that _this_ room had no spot of blood anywhere. The undisturbed white sheets (now he wondered whether Xemnas was colourblind to have such a limited range of interior colors) on the bed looked oddly comforting.

Sora collapsed on the bed, wondering who had occupied this room before him. A larger question: How many rooms like this existed in the Castle, anyway? An even larger question: _What time is it?_

Solved, by the luminous clock hanging above the mirror on the back of the door. It read 8:03 am.

"Eight in the morning...eight in the morning and it's still pitch dark," he murmured, hugging one of the three pillows on the bed. "I think I like twilight more than pitch darkness..."

_It's not _entirely_ dark, _Antiform pointed out in his head._ You can see a bit of Kingdom Hearts out your window...ahh, buddyboy, someday, it'll be mine..._

"Fat chance, Darkie," Sora chuckled.

Funny how in a span of twelve hours your life can change. Organization XIII, once after his blood, was now deeply indebted to him. Heck, he was as good as one of them.

His heart was no longer in him...

_You now have no emotion whatsoever._

He had just been knighted!

_You have just been betrayed._

He fell asleep whilst staring at the Nobody symbol mounted on the white ceiling, wondering how Riku and Kairi would take the news.

-------------------

**T**he overhead bell jangled, and Rinoa looked up from the countertop, which she was dutifully scrubbing earlier. Her mouth dropped open when she saw who it was.

"Long time no see, Rin."

"Where have you run off to?" she grinned, planting her hands on her hips. Her and Tifa's bar seemed to have a lot of unexpected customers lately.

"Oh, same old, same old. Got caught up in something."

She clucked her tongue as he perched on his usual seat. "So...what'll you have?"

"The usual. You do remember, don't you? Or are you such an old maid now?" he teased.

She pouted. "The usual, then. Stop teasing me about my age."

"You don't age," he pointed out, watching her as she made her way across the racks of alcohol.

"Still."

He laughed.

"You're happy today," she commented, setting a shotglass in front of him. His face immediately fell.

"Actually, it's been a horrible day."

She clucked her tongue again. It felt good, actually. It's been a long time since she has used her tongue in other things than talking. Cripes, she missed doing _those_ things. "Tell Auntie Rinoa all about it, and she might give you a drink on the house."

"Aun_tie_ Riinoooa," he smirked.

"C'mon, I want to hear about what happened to you and your bedheaded buddy..." she whined. Well, not as loud as she'd actually like to, but she _was_ a very convincing girl.

"Later about that," he snorted, tossing a stray lock of hair out of his eyes. "It's about a girl...I need advice..."

She quirked an eyebrow.

"I got a heart today, don't look at me like that. Or a shard of heart. Whatever."

"Auntie's listening...!" she clapped her hands gleefully, laughing at the indignant look on the his blushing face.

He groaned, then laughed all the same.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N:** There you are. Who _is_ talking to King Mick-o? Who's talking to Rinoa (it's pretty obvious, so _how_ exactly does she know him?)? When will Sora get to see his half-inky self in the mirror? How the _hell_ does Kairi manage to jimmy Riku's lock so often, and more importantly, _why_ won't Riku change the damn lock?

So many questions.

Read, review, flame if you want to. Go.

A shoutout to **Wing staff-4** (Sora doesn't know the meaning of dramatic anyway XD), **Maux**( It ain't Shiva, she said, "Guess again." right?), **Skitty 2004** (Poor, poor Riku...are all pretty boys airheads..? But Riku's an exception, I think he's a smart one), **darkdude71 **(of course, when you're madly in love with someone, you do a lot of stupid things), **Phoenix80hp** (can't guarantee a happy ending...you'll have to read it 'till the end!), **hikari-aozora** (T-T you need cookie rehab. NOW...XD), **DJ Damage**(actually, I was thinking of you when I was writing the author's note...), **FlowerLady-Aerith** (Mickey's just a poor, confused mouse...haha. I'll read that story of yours when you upload it), **The Regalia** (it's like the effect bounced off Roxas, he can't become a Nobody again, can't he? So it rebounded to Sora), **DREAMER1389 **(He's practically dead, yes? And Riku...he can't get pissed off. In my Grand Plot, he does that much more later), **Ellie0223** (It took him a _lot_ of brainpower to do _that_...haha fangirls might kill me if I keep on making fun of Riku), **mOOnlite-dUSk** (Kairi can't read the true note...it's for Sora's eyes only), **twilighttries**(cookies! thank you...), **fallingstar **(Thirteen shards, no? Ah, Sora's practically dead...Nobodies only exist, they don't live, actually...and do you remember me telling you guys someone WILL die? hahaha maybe I meant it as a plural...you'll just have to wait and read...), **Neon**(The suspense…I like suspense, yeah), **Sakura Scout** (Ah. Yes, I am 100 evil for killing Sora like that..he's such a happy boy).

Thank you guys! I _really _hope you'll continue reviewing...please? pretty please?

**You! **Yeah, the guy who just reads and doesn't review! _Please_ review me and tell me what you think!

Next chapter's quote:

_"Stop it! I'm not him! Leave me alone!"_

OKAY you should get it by now that IT IS NOT KAIRI. Personally, I think it's obvious.

Ja ne!


	19. Fallen

**A/N: ** GAH! The Plot Bunny is trying to kill me! It says **move the plot along NOW you authoress**!

_Stupid, sounds so stupid, you sound more immature than buddyboy._

Shut up, infernal ink-covered kid. Anyway, updates may be delayed (midterms are coming to get me)...sorry guys.

A note about the ages of the characters. Sora is 14 at the start of KH, right? Then he turns 15 in KH2. In my plot, KH2 takes a year, so in this fanfic he's already 16 (but he's stopped aging anyway, Nobodies and Heartless don't age). Apply to all other characters. When Roxas and Naminé get their own shards, they have two years of catching up on age, since Sora and Kairi were both 14 when they lost their hearts. Riku is 17 years old already. Okay? Okay?

**Disclaimer:** Kingdom Hearts is not mine... If it was mine I'd be famous, right? But I'm not, so...

-----------------------

**XIX: **_Fa_**ll**en

**--------------------**

"So she has a heart, but her Other's still in love with that creep, I don't know, but Larx's scared, and---"

Rinoa chuckled, reaching over to pat Axel on the back as he reached for his ginger ale (taken after the shot of brandy, and which she had refilled for at least four times in the past two hours--he'd gone to the bathroom thrice already) in a very dejected way. "I'm inferring from this that you have a crush on Larxene, yes?"

Axel coughed loudly on his drink, flecking tiny drops of the ale everywhere.

Ha. Ha. Rearrange 'Ale' and add an X, there, you've got Axel. Rinoa rolled her eyes, irritated at herself. Checking for customer's prying eyes (she could've woven Illusion around the bar, but she's feeling a little lazy and sleepy today, so no dice), she passed a hand over the little round droplets and drew them to one another, creating a large round puddle, which she disintegrated easily.

Sorceress powers were cool. It'd even be cooler if she weren't hiding them.

She sighed and directed her attention back to the still-spluttering pyromaniac in front of her. "Well?" she asked impatiently.

"What the _hell_ do you mean by crush, anyway?" He eyed her suspiciously, gloved fingers wrapped tight around his glass.

"It means, you admire someone," Rinoa answered, wiping down the counter again.

He stared into the depths of his ginger ale, as if expecting the ale to magically show him the answer to his nonlife's questions. She forced away the urge to actually _make_ the ale show something.

It surprised her that Axel had come back, of all the probably days to come barging into her and Tifa's bar. The fiery redhead had first shown up about two years ago, right after Roxas and his friends had their little drinking contest (in which Roxas actually got drunk on ginger ale, a phenomenon that still puzzles her today). He had come in from the pouring rain that night (don't tell anyone, but that was actually Rinoa's doing; she had a serious case of sentimental breakdown the night before---she didn't mean for the rain to come down _that_ hard), coat slick with water, and trailing mud all over her clean floor. Gah.

She instantly recognized Axel as the Flurry of Dancing Flames, number Eight of Organization XIII, a group of incomplete wanting to be whole--just like the bedheaded blonde boy before him.

He didn't need to know that.

Rinoa knows a lot of things.

Axel was moping something about his best friend (which she already knew was Roxas), and Rinoa coaxed his troubles out. All she got coherently was that Roxas was somehow stuck in a simulated town, something about a guy named DiZ, and something about a Keyblade Wielder named Sora.

He didn't need to know that she already knew that. Nobody needed to know.

He went everyday into 7th Heaven after that, always careful to come after Roxas did. She managed to coax out his being a Nobody out of him; but it cost her telling him her secret, just to convince him that she'll never tell. His initial reaction was somewhere between awe and apprehension, but after a duel between them (done in the dead of the night), he only had respect. Hey! And she didn't even break a sweat on _that_ duel.

Then he suddenly stopped coming after Kingdom Hearts resonated with the merging of Sora and Roxas.

Rinoa _does_ know a lot of things. No, not because she can read his mind (she reserves that for very special circumstances, and for very special people), but simply because...she has a _lot_ of connections. She's Sorceress Rinoa, after all.

"If that's what having a crush means, then I guess I have a crush on her," he said belatedly. "Now that I think about it, it's driving me nuts."

"_She's _driving you nuts," she corrected.

Axel growled in a very pyromaniac tone of voice, judging from the way the ginger ale caught fire. Luckily, nobody noticed his little mishap and Rinoa was able to put it out with a simple Blizzard spell.

"You _should_ learn to control your temper," she admonished, nose wrinkling as the acrid smell of evaporated ale wafted from the darkened glass.

"Whatever...but I think she's...attracted to Zexion, but it's only _Arlene_ who's attracted to Ienzo..."

She carefully set the glass into the sink (which was already full of dirty glasses she still hadn't have the time to wash from yesterday) and shook her head sadly. "That's why she's reverting."

"What?"

"She's reverting because somehow, getting a shard of heart awakened Arlene...and Arlene has very deep connections with Ienzo...so it's natural for the both of them to revert. You do get what I'm saying, don't you?"

He shook his head. "No."

"Ienzo brings out Arlene, Arlene brings out Ienzo, they finish whatever business they have before they turned Heartless."

"So..."

She sighed. "I'm sure once that the two fall in love in each other once again, Arlene will refuse to let go. Larxene will be...I dunno, gone forever."

She watched Axel bang his head on the table multiple times. It seemed like his next favorite pastime to setting things on fire.

"But I don't want Larxene to go..."

"Ah," she tapped him lightly on the head. "That's only going to happen if you guys let her."

"I'm sure as hell _not_ going to let that happen," he growled. "I'd better get started then--and I think the Superior would've found out his hair gel's missing now...I'm gonna warn Roxas..."

She nodded and shooed him away. "You know where to portal out, right?"

Axel grinned at her. "Never forgot. See you around, Rin. Thanks for the advice." He got up from the stool and waved a gloved hand. He picked through the tables and pushed the glass doors open, disappearing into the crowd milling in Market Square at this time of the night.

"Good luck," she murmured as she watched him go. Turning around, she eyed the stack of glasses she still had to wash. She's been quite busy lately.

"Good luck...you're going to need it."

---------------------

"You have reached the Gummi Ship Network communications division. If you know the local number, press it now. To reach the operator, press 0."

_beep_.

"Good morning, this is operator Fallah Ivalice, how may I be of assistance?"

"Uhm...good morning too. May I get connected to Disney Castle, please? I need to speak to King Mickey."

"The network does not accept calls for Disney Castle, miss--"

"Kairi. Are you sure, ma'am Fallah? It's going to be really, really short, I promise..."

"Kairi? Kairi Dalmasca? Princess of Radiant Garden?"

"Radiant Garden...? Well, I am a Princess of Light, but I'm not so sure of Radiant--"

"Princess of Light?"

"Seventh one."

"Oh."

"Patch me through the King...please?"

"Oh, okay, I'm...sure the King won't mind. Are you sure you're Kairi?"

"Yes, I am. I need to ask something about Sora Hikari..."

"Oh, him. Well then--"

"Wait! Have you heard anything from--"

_beep._

"Miss Ivalice!"

"You have reached Disney Castle, overseer of the Worlds. To reach the Treasury, press 1. To reach the Court of Magic, press 2. To reach the Captain of the Guards, press 3. To reach His Majesty's Hall, press 4. To reach--"

_beep._

--------------------------

"Hello?"

"Uhm," Kairi started, twirling the telephone cord around a slim finger as she bounced nervously on her heels, leaning against the mahogany stairs of the Dalmascan home. She had called the King himself. WHOOA. The King.

She couldn't sleep; she never really believed Sora would ditch her and Riku just like that. Perhaps he left a message with the King...

"King Mickey?" she said hesitantly, berating herself. She _technically _was royalty herself, being a Princess of Light...but it wasn't the same--gah! Kairi! Think Royal!

"Princess Kairi?" King Mickey's voice filtered through the phone (never mind that it sounded squeakier than ever), and she gulped.

Okay. Breathe, Kai. "Uhm, I just wanted to ask if, uhm, ah, Sora left any..."

"Message?" his voice said sadly. "No, none at all...I suppose he wanted to leave without paining you with his departure."

Restraining herself from yelling into the phone 'I'M GOING TO KILL SORA' (it wasn't very Princess-like), Kairi once again, took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice even. "Did he say anything about me or Riku? Anything at all...?"

"No...I'm sorry."

Her shoulders slumped. "No, no, it's me who should be sorry for bothering you, Your Majesty...Thank you."

"Alright. Come visit us, okay?"

She nodded unconsciously, knowing full well that the King won't see her nodding anyway. "Okay, King Mickey."

"G'bye."

"B'bye..."

The King hung up, and Kairi put the phone back in its cradle, feeling so mad that she might just have to break something.

--------------------------

It was a phone especially crafted for him by the technology of Radiant Garden. Sleek, metallic, and able to devour up to thirty gigabytes of information, the Royal Phone (sounds so cheesy, but he'd rather it be that way) was _the_ way to keep in touch with the world.

For some reason, King Mickey dreaded every call that came through.

_beep beep beep beep---_click.

It was a number he'd memorized just recently. The Gummi Ship Network's hotline, patched through Fallah Ivalice. Mickey sometimes wondered whether the operator was a magnet for important calls that he didn't necessarily like to take, but had to. Like that one.

He never liked lying, but if he had to for the safety of his Kingdom (not to mention his own life), he most definitely will.

He hoped Sora would still have the heart to forgive him, he thought, fingering a white feather as he reclined in his Library chair. He stared, not really seeing, at the Brooms trying to clean up hundreds of similar white feathers from the floor.

--------------------------

"So I take by your expression that he didn't leave anything."

Kairi whirled around; _how_ did Riku manage to get in so fast and so quietly...?

"If you're wondering how I got in here, your father let me in," he chuckled, amused at the bewildered expression that was most likely on her face right now.

She hopped off the stairs and plopped down dejectedly beside him on the couch. "No, he didn't leave anything at all..."

"You know, you're too old to pout, Princess."

Kairi threw a pillow at him, which he caught easily and threw back. She growled good-naturedly. She seemed to have gotten over that a trifle _too _fast...

_He forgot you, you forget him back... He _left_ you, for crying out loud!_

Huh. Voices in their heads was Sora's area of expertise, not hers. Whatever.

"Hey, want to get some ice cream?" Riku asked suddenly, grinning at her.

_Don't think about him anymore...Kairi..._

"Sure," she nodded enthusiastically, taking his hand and pulling him from the couch, oblivious to the red that rushed up his pale visage as she did. "Dad! I'm going out!" she yelled in the general direction of her adoptive father's study.

_"Have fun, honey! Riku! Take care of my daughter!"_

It was very hard not to laugh at the resulting expression on Riku's face.

"Kairi...!" he growled back at her, pulling her towards him and easily slipping a protective arm around her waist. Her eyes widened, and Riku smiled.

_It's your life, KaiKai. You don't have to live in the past..._

She tried her utmost not to listen, but it was far more easier to listen than to fight it...she had felt this before, but not as strong as this. It was like a lifeline of hers had snapped--the lifeline of her memories of Sora.

Grinning, she gave Riku a quick kiss on the cheek before pulling him once again down the street.

**------------------------**

"EIGHT AND THIRTEEN!"

Sora shifted under his white (really, since when was _anything_ in this castle any other color than black, white, or a combination of the two?) wool blanket and pressed his pillow over his face, trying to block out all sound. Hm. That sounded a lot like Xemnas, yes, it did. he hoped he didn't suffocate from using his pillow as an amazingly large muffler.

He held his breath, expecting another explosion from Xemnas.

And didn't take another breath. He waited for that squeezing feeling of his lungs gasping for more oxygen. No--none whatsoever.

WAY COOL.

_Cripes, you _don't_ breathe, and you think it's cool? You are the most abnormal kid I have ever had the misfortune to be the darkness of._

Yawning, he tossed the pillow aside (and didn't notice it crash into an avalanche of feathers into the wall) and scratched his head (with the non-claw hand, he remembered this time, his scalp's already scarred as it is), searching for that wall clock from the morning earlier. He spotted it hanging over that tacky mirror behind his bedroom door.

8:37 AM.

_I think oversleeping would be an understatement._

"Shut it, Darkie."

Muttering about how to get home and Gummi ship schedules, he ambled over to the mirror like he usually did whenever he wakes up, just in case he has dried drool on his face or something.

This, however, was much, much worse than dried drool.

"OhMyGod."

-_in you and I there's a new land_

_angels in flight--_

Right on cue, Sora hallucinated someone singing...

-_what's left of me--_

"OhMyGod." He spluttered again. That singing sounded a lot like Naminé...and that _crash_ sounded a lot like Demyx's sitar getting thrown across a distant room. But enough of singing lessons and whatnot; he had something very serious right here.

-_what's left of me now-_

No wonder Naminé fainted. Heck.

"_WHAT THE HELL ROXAS GO _AWAY" Naminé's voice screamed from somewhere above him. "AND NO, I AM NOT TEACHING YOU LIFESTREAM PHYSICS! WHAT DO YOU MEAN I--"

"FINE!"

_-I watch you, fast asleep--_

Seriously, Naminé was much, much more bipolar than him. Of course, they're the only two Nobodies left in this Castle, so it's just fitting for them. It was bugging him that he wasn't as much affected by his appearance; he should be scared out of his wits right now.

-_all I fear means _NO WAY IN HELL RIGHT _NOW_!-

Sora chuckled to himself, leaning on the door and listening into their conversation, or shouted exchange or words, or whatever. Naminé seemed to be doing most of the screaming, anyway.

-_all I fear means nothing--_ GAH! JUST BECAUSE WE SPLIT YOUR SHARD--_mphhf!_--OKAY SHUTTING UP NOW GET YOUR--_mphhf--_

Silence.

He sighed. Naminé sure was a handful, he never thought she _could_ be one...

_You DO know what that means, buddyboy? You ARE the only Nobody in this frickin' Castle!_

The unpleasant truth hit him. He _was_ the only one in this Castle without a heart (or shard of heart)...His gaze fell once again on his reflection, no longer distracted by random screams of confused girls or anything.

A boy stared back at him, mahogany brown spikes on one side of his scalp, and ebony strands sticking up gracefully from the other, brushing one black eyebrow slightly, and shadowing one very sickly yellow Heartless eye. Black had been splashed generously on the left side of his face, and streaked over the bridge of his nose. Even his _neck_ was half black, and...

"OhMyGod." He realized the whole left _half _of his body was Antiform. _Why _didn't he notice it this morning...?

_Because, idiot, you were so distracted that you were on autopilot..._

"Thanks, Darkie," he said aloud sarcastically, examining his now half-black complexion. He _was_ literally half-Heartless. Vaan and Ashe would most probably kill him on sight. Heck, at this rate, Riku would kill him on sight.

This would be the time to sigh, if he had any breath to sigh with.

"I...I can never go back to the Islands..." he stammered, placing both hands on each side of the mirror for support, because right now, his knees were failing him again.

_And I thought you'd never realize that_.

For once Sora did not berate his Antiform; his mind was too much of a mess right now to think clearly. He'd never be able to tell his best friends that he was all right; he'd be able to _come home_, he'd never talk to Kairi once again...He'd never be able to tell her he's sorry.

"Damn it," he whispered weakly at himself, gritting his teeth. King Mickey had _really_ ruined his life.

Oh God, his life was crumbling around him.

_Uh! Uh! You DON'T have a life! You're dead, remember?_

He. Was. Dead.

He'd never be friends with Kairi again--and she could never love a half-Heartless, simply because she's a Princess of Heart.

His _existence_ was screwed. He looked at himself once again, dull sky-blue eye and shiny all-yellow Heartless eye staring back at him curiously. Sora ran a nail across his left cheek and forced himself to think positive. "Hey...at least I'll never have problems with pimples on _that_ side of my face ever again."

Cripes, that sucked.

He bellowed as loud as he could as he smashed his clenched fist into the glass, showering him with its shards, cutting him everywhere.

Shards reminded him of his own now-scattered shards of heart... his reflection stared at him mockingly from every single glass shard.

Sora dropped to his knees, not caring if the pieces of glass dug into his skin, because _it didn't hurt_. Nothing hurt at all, just a whole lot of blood and icy numbness. He supposed it was the only thing Heartless felt...

He was a Heartless _and_ a Nobody--no wonder.

He wanted--he struggled to cry, and tears answered him, running down him cheeks and onto his lips. He tasted the familiar saltiness of tears...and the coppery taste of blood. He felt his eyes widen.

_Heartless cry blood, if you wanna know, buddyboy. But then again, have you ever _seen_ a Heartless cry? Heck no!_

"Wielder, it'd hurt a _lot_ less if you got your knees off the glass."

He looked up into the face of a concerned Axel, who recoiled visibly as he looked up, probably from the sight of his weeping blood. Number Eight recovered quickly, however; it seemed that he was used to seeing things like that. He extended a gloved hand to help him up. "Come on..."

It was at this precise moment that Sora saw himself reflected in his teal-colored eyes, and realized he _still _looked a lot like Roxas. Axel was Roxas' best friend...and now that Roxas had Naminé, Axel wanted a...replacement.

Such was the thoughts of a paranoid boy. But he's half-Heartless and Nobody; Heartless hate anything and everything, Nobodies instinctively search for ulterior motives.

And Sora saw himself as Roxas.

"...Aren't you hurt, or something?" Axel pressed on, wiggling his fingers. "You look just like you did yesterday. With _those _shards (his nose wrinkled)... you should be in serious pain..."

"I'm not hurt, Axel," he snapped, slapping away his outstretched hand.

The pyro cocked his head unbelievingly. "Don't be stupid; you're bleeding all over."

"I _can't feel pain!_" Sora exploded, scrabbling angrily at the glass and holding up his bleeding palms to prove it. "See!" He picked up the largest shard he could find and drove it through his palm. He never thought he'd be desparate to feel _pain_, but there he was. He held up his right palm, blood streaming down, shard driven cleanly through.

As expected, all he felt was a ripping _feeling_...none. No pain. Axel gasped in horror.

"Whatever, I have to get you cleaned up!" he said hastily, pulling Sora to his feet forcefully.

Sora growled as he slapped his hand away once again.

"_What_ is the matter with you?" Eight asked, obviously bewildered.

_He's just faking it. He thinks you're Roxas. Ha haha..._

"Why the hell are you here, anyway?" he snapped, staring at Axel with something akin to pure hatred. _That_ was something, he discovered, that he _could _feel, since he was only half-Nobody after all.

"I heard you scream." He said simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Roxas screamed exactly like you did when he first woke up in his room."

_I TOLD you he thinks you're Roxas!_

"So why do you care?"

"Uh, because you gave me a heart? And because I want to help you cope with being a Nobody?"

Sora bitterly plucked the bloody shard from his even bloodier palm, wishing he could at least feel some pain. "I don't need your help. I'm not even a whole Nobody; for your information I can still feel--"

"...hatred? Anger? That's what Roxas told me," he said calmly, crossing his arms and stepping across the glass nearer to Sora.

"I don't need your help," he repeated. "For that matter, I don't need anyone's help; I don't want anyone fussing over me when they've got problems of their own."

"I _want_ to help you, Sora," Axel said firmly.

"No."

"Let me help, just this once...you won't survive if you walk this Nobody path alone."

"No." Sora shook his head and gritted his teeth. He was sure being stubborn. But Sora was the champion of stubborness; that he knew for a fact.

"Roxas was like that, you know," he smiled. "But I eventually broke down his walls, and look at him--"

Sora had had enough. He didn't like being compared to someone. He honestly never did, and now that he's the Nobody...so _this_ is how Roxas felt like. Someone replaced him. Axel saw him as Roxas. He was _Sora_, not Roxas! NO!

"Stop it! I'm not him! Leave me alone!" he roared, blood flying everywhere as he swept a hand across the room. "Leave me BE!"

"You _should_ know by now that _that's_ not going to work on me, Sora." He said in an even calmer voice, which infuriated Sora even more, if possible.

_Kill him!_ Antiform screeched, his voice blocking out every coherent thought Sora had.

"Axel, are you there--SORA! DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!"

There was something oddly familiar in the voice--Sora snapped his eyes open and followed the sound to a pale Roxas, Oblivion and Oathkeeper clutched tightly in each hand.

"Ro...xas?"

He winced as his gaze landed on his arm; it seemed like he had striked at Axel, and the pyro had defended with one hell of a Firaga. No matter--his skin was as black as charred already. He didn't wince from pain, he winced because his arm simply looked gross. Gross and burnt.

"Roxas. Don't just stand there with your mouth open--do you have a Potion on you?" Axel asked matter-of-factly, as if things like these happened all the time. And knowing the violent tendencies of Organization XIII--it probably did.

The blonde shook his head vehemently as he tore his gaze from Sora, and sprinted over the glass to face him. "_Curaga_."

Sora watched impassively as the wounds started to knit together...and stopped there.

"Wha..?" the two Nobodies' asked simultaneously, jaws dropping open.

His mouth curved downward into a frown as he started shaking his arm rapidly; the spell had actually stopped working. Maybe Healing had no effect on Heartless. Or maybe Roxas just sucked at Healing. The first option seemed more possible; Sora remembered that Roxas scored an A in his first Healing Arts field exam.

"Uh. Could you please stop staring at me?" he asked loudly.

"Man...doesn't that hurt like hell?" Roxas stared at Sora like he'd never seen him before.

Sora shook his head. "Actually, no pain at all."

Roxas looked kind of...woozy.

Axel's eyebrows furrowed in concern. "Whatever. We have to get you cleaned up."

Sora cringed. "Anyone but Vexen...please?"

The pyro grinned in a very evil way that Sora had no trouble reading as I'm-sorry-but-we-have-no-choice. "Sorry." He grabbed Sora's arm and led him across the glass, making a very loud cruching noise. Axel looked like he was sincerely trying to help Sora, and the brunette really appreciated it.

Against his will, Sora grinned at the surrealness of it all, wondering where his Antiform and his hatred went.

"Axel...Superior found us out again..." Roxas said loudly and dejectedly, trailing behind them. "We're gonna get it when I get back from school tomorrow...I think I'll find a way to land myself in detention or something..."

**A/N: **I swear, this thing has a plot. Really! It just went off somewhere I don't know...

What the _heck_ is happening to Kairi? Why do Axel and Roxas always steal Xemnas' hair gel? When will Rinoa realize that VIOLENCE is the answer to her exile?

As for the one who was speaking to the King, you SHOULD have already gotten it by now.

Thanks for the reviews, guys!

**FlowerLady-Aerith**(as far as I'm concerned Kairi's a girl, yes?), **darkdude71 **(Sora's dense...haha who in his right mind would sacrifice everything just like that...and you'll find out who soon enough), **hikari-aozora **(never thought of cookie rehab that way...), **Wing staff-4** (Homey? Oooh), **DJ Damage** (way cool...Kairi stabbing Mickey...that's something you don't see everyday). **Sakura Scout** (my munny...NOW. Haha), **Neon-Dusk **(Thanks a lot for reviewing XD), **Phoenix80Hp **(there's tons more angst coming), **TgIiDgUiS **(you'll have to read it till the end to know for sure about the ending), **Skitty 2004** (may, or may not be Maleficent, as for Rinoa...well, you know who it is), **DREAMER1389 **(Yeah...but Sora's in for a _lot_ of trouble), **mOOnlite**-**dUSk** (all will become clear--as soon as I get off my lazy butt and start writing again),** twilighttries **(Here you are! Update!), **fallingstar**( haha thanks),** Ellie0223 **(strange? It's okay...)

Thank y'all!

This is a bit...shorter than my usual chapters...I don't know what got into me... Anyways, review, okay? Flamers go ahead.

Next chapter quote:

_"Sora's dead--Stop asking for him."_

Aheheheh this one could be pretty confusing... keep on guessing, you guys! Ja ne!


	20. Bloodlust

**A/N:** Sorry sorry sorry sorry for the huge delay! Loads of schoolwork...and a barely passing grade on that essay...-sobs-. So anyway, I'm a bit...sad; reviews have declined in number, see. Uhm...where are you guys...?

**Warning:** Extreme chapter longness, blood, and angst.

**Disclaimer: **Square Enix owns the wonder that is Kingdom Hearts. Square Enix is Heartless, for Square Enix has set the release date of FFXII here on October 29. Square Enix must know that that is a very long time. -shakes fist angrily- But one must not be angry with Square Enix, for they do have the right to torture us poor fans, who patiently wait for the next game's release... -sobs-

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**XX: B**l_o_od**lu_s_t**

--------------------

Sora winced; the white gauze Vexen had so carefully wrapped around his seared skin was coming off, and the burnt flesh was poking through. He winced again. It looked gross. Ew.

"Wielder? You okay?" Lexaeus' voice boomed out from behind him.

He sighed, and finally tore the offending strip of cloth off his hand, tossing the bloody remnants in one of the trash cans placed strategically around the gym (for Lexaeus was not only a health buff, but a vigilant environmentalist as well--of course, when your element of control is earth, you couldn't be blamed for that, right?). "Pfft," he bit his lip. Good thing he couldn't feel pain; this would've hurt like hell.

"Good lord, why _did_ you take that off?"

Sora turned around and sighed. "I can't fight with something hanging off my arm like this!"

Number Five laughed. "It's a miracle you can even fight with your arm like that, Sora."

He grinned.

The hulking Nobody had taken charge of training Sora in the nuances of being a Nobody in battle--and seriously, the Corridors were _cool_. It was amazing how much damage a Nobody could stand--the photograph Lexaeus had shown him of a Demyx kunai-cushion was testament to that. But _he_, Sora, could withstand much, much more injury. Aside from the fact that normally deadly attacks left him with only light scratches (inherited from his Heartless side--they were more resilient than weeds; and Axel had told him earlier that the Firaga he had sent was enough to burn something to the bone), he couldn't _feel_ the pain...whether that was good or bad, Sora still had no idea.

He _was_ still a bit lacking in the portalling aspect. Lexaeus told him it was probably the same concentration he uses to summon his Keyblade, but it was far more easier, in Sora's opinion.

_How_ did they manage to make portalling so _easy?_ Feh, even the fancy hand gestures Xemnas always made weren't even needed...proof that he really _was_ melodramatic.

On the bright side, at least he had managed to portal six feet from where he originally was. Hm.

"You need to work on your left side--you always leave it open."

Sora flipped over and propelled himself off the wall, landing behind Lexaeus.

Right. He was supposed to be sparring with Five, not contemplating the day's events.

"My left side? Huh?" He groaned as the tomahawk caught him by the right heel as he quick ran, making him fall flat on the ground. "No fair!"

"Nothing's fair in _this_ world, kiddo," Lexaeus reminded him, swinging his tomahawk over his head as he prepared to pummel Sora to the ground.

Sora groaned again--his burnt arm had left _such_ a bloody print on the white floor. Shaking his head (a bit of bleach would take care of that nicely), he rolled out of the way of the tomahawk and sprinted to the other side of the training gym (in which the white walls were decorated with various posters declaring the virtues of a healthy, red-meat-free diet, milk, and proper sex education). Lexaeus came charging again, and this time, Sora finally focused.

The Kingdom Key, being a Keyblade of light, no longer answered his call--none of his Keychains would work either. No matter; the Dark Keyblade worked magnificently. Sora was always careful not to let the Keyblade take Lexaeus' shard of heart--he might not be able to control himself then. Pfft. His clawed left hand did most of the work anyway. It was fun watching the trails of darkness dancing in the air as he moved.

"Hiyaa!" he yelled jokingly, rushing to meet Lexaeus, and tomahawk and Keyblade clashed together.

"Finally, you've stepped up offense," Five said happily, before they both pushed off the other and skidded backwards. "_That_'s the Keyblade Master I know."

Sora twirled the night-black Keyblade once he ran forward. "C'mon Lex!"

He suddenly stopped short, and barely managed to dodge the critical blow Five had just delivered. "Sora? You okay?"

_buddyboy!_

Sora was in no condition to answer--he was too preoccupied in keeping his Antiform under control. It was struggling to break free once again; characterized by a thirst for blood. Literally. And in the way Sora was sure warm blood was pounding in Lexaeus' veins right now, the craving was _very _hard to control.

It wasn't this bad before..._agh!_

_C'mon, you don't need to spend your time here! There's still Kingdom Hearts to take over!_

"Aah!" he gritted his teeth, falling on his knees, head between his hands. He let the Dark Keyblade disappear. Control, he needed control...

"W-wielder?"

He looked up into Lexaeus' worried face (true worry, yes) and instantly forced himself to look at the ground. The slight blush of blood rushing from hard exertion was too much--the craving was becoming stronger, much stronger.

_Feh, take him!_

"Lexaeus, RUN!" he managed to scream before his control snapped, and his Antiform took over.

Hmmm...now that Sora thought about it, it wasn't so bad. He had no heart, after all, why would he worry? He looked up once again, through Heartless eyes. He had turned completely Heartless..._cool_.

Lexaeus backed away slowly, surprise etched on his face. Stupid. Didn't take his advice to run.

"Uh uh! You're mine!" Sora and Antiform screeched at the same time, claws poised to strike, ready to kill and taste blood. It was going to be a fun day.

-------------------------

Kairi fidgeted in her seat; something that never normally did in Lifestream Physics. All she usually did in said subject was either doodle, daydream, or do both at the same time. However, today was a first--the professor was late.

She grimaced. She _hated_ her professor.

All she looked forward to this class was the end of it. She had, miraculously, finished her Physics homework on time; she had almost resorted to calling Naminé; but she realized she had never gotten her Nobody's number in the first place.

Another reason to look forward to the blessed moment when the bell rang. Which was approximately an hour and fourteen minutes to go.

"Huh?"

There was a sudden commotion at the door, and suddenly scores of students burst into the room.

"What the..?" her voice trailed off as more and more students crowded inside; not only from her year, but from the next higher. "Riku!"

The platinum-haired boy waved back and threaded his way to her desk, oblivious to the wistful sighs of the girls he passed as he sat down on the floor next to her, leaning on her leg (which made her blush a thousand shades of red). "Hey, Kairi," he smiled.

"Why're you here? This is a year II class," she asked, curious to as why the students would pack themselves like sardines in a single room (and ignoring the fact that he was leaning on her leg--geez, why'd his hair have to feel so soft, anyway?). She subconsciously started to play with his silver strands, and Riku sighed wistfully. Hm. Maybe she should borrow his conditioner sometime.

"No idea, we were about to have Physics III when--"

"--some wiseguy calls us out of the classroom and tells us to follow him, right?"

Kairi arched a ruby eyebrow at the sudden grin Roxas gave her as he sat on the floor behind Riku. "You guys too? Where's Naminé? And..." she eyed the blonde boy, who squirmed under her scrutiny ,"What happened to you?"

"What do you mean, what happened to me?" he asked in a voice that clearly said that he knew what she meant.

"Don't be stupid--"

"No, I won't go out with you, no way," a miffed Naminé scooted over to them, brushing off a random guy as she passed them. Kairi's eyes widened, and she felt Riku go rigid against her leg (and squeeze her hand--huh? how did his fingers manage to intertwine themselves with hers? Whatever--it actually felt good, so she squeezed back).

"If I may ask, what happened to you two?" He asked cautiously. "You look...different. Older. Uhm. I think I'm going crazy."

Roxas and Naminé exchanged looks and laughed nervously. The blonde boy grinned, shifting his bag so that the girl could sit on the floor beside him. "Looks like it was a success, Nam."

She nodded enthusiastically. "Over the weekend we decided to...well, improve how we...ehem, look."

"No duh," Kairi giggled. The two had changed--nothing drastic, but the change was noticeable. Like how Naminé had grown more beautiful and mature overnight or something. Roxas was still his own charmingly bedheaded self, but his voice had deepened to a pleasant tenor, and he had matured too. Fro some reason, they looked more..._sixteen _years old. Hm. At least _their_ weekend was normal.

Roxas stared around. "I thought Sora had the same schedule as this, Kairi, but we haven't seen him since this morning...did he come to school?"

Kairi's face instantly soured, and Riku answered for her, thank heavens. She might just throttle someone if he didn't.

"He... he started journeying again, after the Knighting," he said hesitantly.

Naminé cocked her head thoughtfully. "That's a bit rude; he didn't even say goodbye to me and Roxas..."

"He didn't say goodbye to us either," Kairi spat bitterly. "King Mickey was the one who told us that he just went on."

"Oh," Roxas said uncomfortably. Probably because of the look she knew was on her face. Good thing everyone else was pretty much distracted with either chatting with each other or staring at the legendary Riku to care whether Kairi had a murderous expression on or not.

"Kairi, stop frowning," Riku said loudly, elbowing her knee. She pouted at him as he started tracing circles on her knee. Cripes, Kairi's knees were a ticklish part, and Riku will end up with a knee smashed into his face if continued to do that. She bit back a giggle.

"Hey! Nice one, Riku!" Roxas laughed, observing how Kairi twitched. "How about I try it on you, Naminé?"

A second later, he conceded, rubbing his head where Naminé's book bag had hit him. "Serves you right, Roxie."

"It's Roxas."

Naminé grinned. Kairi rolled her eyes; obviously, they liked each other. Her eyelid twitched violently as Riku traced a finger on a particularly ticklish region of her knee. "Riku, stop doing that," she whispered, not really meaning it.

"Doing what?" he asked innocently, dodging her outstretched arm as she struggled to slap away his hand.

"Alcaia, Dalmasca, pay attention," a male voice suddenly rang through the classroom as a young man, dressed in a black turtleneck and equally black slacks, strode through the door confidently. "Your Lifestream Physics classes have been reshuffled; Physics II and III shall be merged. All who will be called, please go to room 311. The rest, stay." He then proceeded to read names off a class record, and the classroom slowly emptied. Strange. Neither Riku, Roxas, or Naminé was called.

Kairi squinted. Hm. He looked familiar. She turned to Naminé for a clue; but her mouth dropped open.

"Dalmasca, Hikari, Alcaia, get off the floor and onto a seat," the man said sharply, closing his record book with a snap.

He _really_ looked familiar, Kairi thought. She racked her brain for where she had seen him before, and it hit her--it was the guy from the gym: Naminé's neighbor who brought her her gym clothes. No wonder the blonde was shocked. Heck, not only Naminé was shocked, but the whole class in general stared at him in awe. To tell the truth, he was pretty handsome. Okay. Ready to drool over. But Kairi's not a drool-over fangirl--she's been around good-looking boys her entire life.

Although the last time she remembered the guy had his waterfall of hair on the left side of his face. This guy had it on his right. Hm. Whatever; she was never a specifics kind of girl, anyway.

She heard the girls in the room give a collective sigh as the man called attendance; his voice had a certain quietness to it that, oddly, made it more commanding.

Riku raised a hand halfheartedly when his name was called, still staring at the teacher. Roxas, however, had snorted outright when _his_ name was called, and Naminé rigidly raised a hand when her turn came. Kairi, wondering what had gotten into them, just rose her hand like she always did.

Huh. He looked too young to be a Lifestream Physics professor; all the ones who taught the subject were wizened, bespectacled, and funny-accented people. He slid the attendance sheet into a black binder, and the class fell quiet as he surveyed the room.

"You are merged years II and III; this is class 2A, remember that," his voice echoed through the room as he scribbled the section and his own name on the blackboard in neat, precise letters. "I am Zexion Alcaia (at which Riku made a choking noise), and I shall be your Lifestream Physics professor for the rest of this term. And please, don't be so quiet, I know it's not normal for you guys to be _this_ quiet."

The rapt-at-attention atmosphere of the room quickly evaporated into a more relaxed one. Kairi grinned; she knew she was going to like this guy _way_ more than her old professor. She glanced around; smiled were playing around every student's face. Riku, however, was engaged in a hushed conversation with Roxas. Kairi quickly elbowed the Wielder in the ribs as Professor Zexion's eyes flashed in their direction. Too late.

"Alcaia, Hikari, detention."

Roxas, at this point, grinned.

Kairi turned to Naminé, who was seated on her other side. "Is it just me, or does Roxas actually _like_ having to have detention?"

She tried and miserably failed to keep a grin from forming on her pale visage. "He...he got into trouble this morning. He and a friend played a prank that...well, you get what I'm saying, don't you?"

"Okay, professor Zexy," Roxas snickered. Kairi was bewildered. Roxas normally didn't attack teachers like this.

"Hikari, double detention then," the professor paused, and gave a smile of his own. "_Tomorrow_."

Naminé burst into laughter. Roxas' face fell and he colored indignantly, spluttering. "B-but!"

"You too, Naminé."

Roxas put his head on the table, shoulders heaving in silent laughter. Kairi exchanged looks with Riku, and he shrugged. "We'll wring it out of them at lunch."

"Kairi Dalmasca. Double detention with them," Zexion called out. She gasped in imitation of what Roxas had said earlier.

"Professor!"

"Class, next time, don't imitate them. Listen to me when I am teaching. You two Dalmascas, Alcaia, Hikari, don't forget," he grinned. "I'm still finding the most horrible teacher you have to be on duty tomorrow."

They groaned.

"Okay, let's get started. Physics is not the easiest subject on the planet, but if you understand the basics, you'd understand the complexities. Where did you guys stop last time..."

Kairi sighed. Great. _Double_ detention. Way to go, whatever she did to piss the professor off. Gah.

She settled for listening quietly to his lecture, absentmindedly playing with the small white feather she found stuck in her bag's zipper earlier.

This is going to be a _long_ day.

---------------------

"Pfft," Antiform grimaced. _That_ was the fourth time he got his clothes blood-soaked.

Well, at least it wasn't _his_ blood.

He wiped the crimson liquid from his lips; his craving had been satisfied already...now what to do, what to do...? Maybe find another Nobody to kill? Gather more Heartless? Hmm... Roxas wouldn't be coming back for at hours--more fun for him, there was nobody to control Antiform.

Sometime, preferably as soon as possible, he'd have to kill the blonde spiky-haired boy. Even if he was unmerged with Sora, he still had the ability to repress Antiform...that was bad.

Whistling, he walked away, leaving the unconscious number Five in a pool of dark blood.

---------------------

Riku's fingers, were, once again, itching to summon his Keyblade and decapitate a certain blue-haired professor. How the _hell_ did that Nobody get a job, and a teaching job here in Destiny Academy, of all the possible places! But this was his Healing Arts class, and weapons were not allowed unless instructed by the professor.

Gah. Everytime he thinks of the word 'professor', Zexion springs to his mind.

What he wouldn't give to be able to duel with him right then and there. But he had promised to keep the reexistence of Organization XIII secret; he had made a pact with Roxas and Naminé (who seemed just as stunned as him when Zexion walked into the classroom) never to tell, for the sake of protecting Kairi. But Riku wondered whether Kairi would care, not after Sora vanished once again into the night. Heck, she'd even side with the Organization if they wanted to finish Sora off.

It _was_ strange, how Kairi had become so bitter so quickly against Sora. Riku supposed you'd have to have your heart broken for that, and he never really _had_ his own heart broken, so he'd never actually understand.

"Why is everyone late today?" he said loudly, yawning and stretching his arms into Elazul's face beside him. The Jumi swatted his hand away tiredly.

"_Why_ do we have to take Healing Arts, anyway?" he muttered darkly.

Riku yawned again. His professor was late...and there goes Zexion popping up in his mind for some reason. He's going to corner Roxas and Naminé later and get out a very good explanation for this.

"Sorry I'm late, I got lost," a female voice said apologetically in a very brisk manner. A twenty-something woman walked in, earning more than a few low appreciative whistles from the back of the class.

Which was promptly answered by no less than five kunais thrown directly into the wall behind each one of the whistlers.

Riku studied her, careful not to get caught. She was of average height for someone of her age, and she had features made her look like, strangely, a priestess of some sort. But judging from how deep the kunais had lodged into the wall, she was anything but that. Dressed in a black longsleeved shirt and black pants, she had long blond hair that was tied neatly into a ponytail at the nape of her neck, and she moved with a certain quick pace. _And_ she had two stray strands of hair that gracefully swayed from the rest; from the right angle, it looked like bug feelers.

Hm.

"I am your new Healing Arts professor, Larxene Kisaragi. I'll be with you until the end of this term," she introduced in a clipped voice, emerald eyes taking the classroom in. "And for those who ask, I am twenty-one years old, and yes, I am the youngest teacher in this school. I fight with kunais and lightning spells, for those who'd like a duel, see me after class. I am also a level seven White Mage, a level short of a sorceress. Questions?"

Okay. The class was in silent awe. The previous professor was a White Mage named Yunalesca, on whom half the male population had a crush on, but seeing Larxene, it's very possible that she'll immediately, and easily replace Professor Yunalesca.

"No questions? None? Let's get started then. Topic's about Intermediate Potion Mixing, and--_Axel_, I'm fine, go teach your own class," she said exasperatedly, apparently eyeing someone standing outside the door. Sighing, she nodded once and turned back to the class. She held out a hand and her kunais disappeared from the wall and coalesced back into her hand, where they disappeared once again.

"Cripes, she's hot," Elazul whispered as professor Larxene started writing on the blackboard.

Riku wrinkled his forehead. "You already have a girlfriend," he shot back.

"But she's hot all the same, Riku."

He rolled his eyes. Only _one_ girl was hot in his eyes, and she had a certain fire that made her so.

-------------------------

"Sora? Hey..."

Uh? Sora yawned, and opened his eyes, finding a dishelved Roxas (wearing an even more dishelved uniform) hovering over his face, expression worried. Sora blinked, and Roxas flinched. "What, Roxas?"

A muscle twitched in his Other's jaw, and he looked very much like he was struggling not to roll his eyes.

"What?" he repeated, sitting up...on a bed in the Castle Infirmary (yes, there was such a room, for it was necessary to have a place in which fighting and killing each other was banned). Infirmary? Huh? Why was he here?

Roxas was in the process of slapping his hand to his forehead in exasperation. "He doesn't remember anything..."

A female voice snorted derisively, and Sora peered around the blonde boy. Naminé (actually, she looked quite good in a plaid skirt, yes--and Sora stopped staring when he noticed Roxas was glaring daggers at him) and Larxene(still in black, but in a turtleneck and slacks--what was up with _her?)_ were sitting on an adjacent white bed, their legs dangling over the edge. And in the bed behind them, there lay a very asleep Lexaeus, snoring softly.

Uh.

Lexaeus.

Sora's eyes widened.

Naminé sighed loudly. "Now he remembers."

Larxene got up, and Roxas backed away, sitting in her place beside Naminé (and Sora noticed that Naminé was staring at Roxas, and that he was staring back, and that they were generally staring at each other in a very awkward way--and when they caught Sora grinning at them, they simultaneously gave him the Look). The blonde Nobody boredly checked his well-being, at least, that's what Sora thought she was doing.

"He's fine, he's fine, he's fine," she murmured, picking up his left hand and inspecting it. She sighed. "Clean your nails--they're still a bit bloody."

"Huh?"

"You turned Antiform and attacked Lexaeus," she recited boredly, now taking to inspecting his still-unhealed burnt arm. "Good thing Saïx was stomping around--he found Lex before he bled out to death. So anyway, he told the Superior, and then he called us, well, since I chucked my cellphone at Axel, Zexion was the one who told me (and she blushed at this slightly), and I pulled Roxas out of class--"

Sora stared at her. "You teach?"

She grimaced. "Acad of Destiny...so anyway, Superior summoned us and made me treat Lex there--"

"You heal?"

"Cripes...I'm a level seven White Mage, I mean, my Other is, I mean, just don't ask."

Sora nodded, partly out of fear, and partly out of amusement.

"So Roxas had to find you and take you down--"

The blonde grinned sheepishly, twiddling his thumbs innocently as he stared at his hands.

"Take me down? And _how_ did he do that...?"

"Mostly summoned Slayers and let them bonk you on the head. Don't worry, you didn't bleed out very badly," Larxene snickered. Sora shot his Other a glare. "I still don't get why Naminé had to come..." she glanced over her shoulder, dropping his arm (now nicely gauzed once more) and glancing over her shoulder. "You got a problem with long distances between you and Roxas or something?" she addressed the blonde girl.

Naminé pouted. "No fair...besides, I had a pop quiz in Bio and I didn't have time to study, thanks to someone who made me stay up all night just to teach him Physics."

Roxas rolled his eyes.

"Anyway again," Larxene stared at him seriously. "You're fine. You've reverted completely from Antiform."

Sora winced, remembering the bloodthirst that pushed him to snap.

"The Nobody Black Market sells blood, if that's what you're thinking," she said offhandedly, smoothing his bedcovers. "It might help in satisfying the craving. Down in Fragment Crossing, just beside the armor shop. Knock thrice, then once."

His Other gasped. "How'd you know that, Larx?"

"Don't ask."

Sora snickered as Roxas instantly shut his mouth.

A portal sprung up at the foot of his bed, revealing Zexion, clad in the same black as Larxene. Huh? Was he teaching or something? And more importantly, was he _blushing_ right now...? Weird.

"Meeting," he said shortly. "You too, Naminé. School's taken care of." He turned one blue-violet eye on Sora. "You okay now?"

Hm. As far as Sora had heard, Zexion wasn't the type to ask something like that. Heck, Zexion wasn't the type who spoke at all. Maybe it was because of the shard of heart? Or maybe it was because Larxene was staring at him?

His head hurt, but on the contrary, he answered, "Fine."

"Let's go," he said to the room in general, and in two swift steps, had taken a furiously blushing Larxene's hand in his.

Uh?

Sora stared, Roxas snorted, Naminé giggled, Larxene blushed, and Zexion huffed as the four of them disappeared into the Corridors.

He blinked rapidly; as soon as Roxas had left, a faint craving for blood surfaced. It was time to find this Black Market, and see if it was any good. He thought it was disgusting to drink blood...but hey! It was better than killing someone. A small sacrifice on his part.

_Sacrifice, always sacrifice, you idiot._

He growled, hate and anger flooding back. He wordlessly opened the Corridors and sprinted in, not noticing that he didn't need to concentrate as he did so.

----------------------

_"donna toki datte_

_zutto futari de_

_donna to--"_

Flip. Swish. Crack.Those were the sounds of a very irritated King answering his personal cellphone (into which he programmed a ringtone he'd just downloaded--sounded so very nice, yes?).

"King Mickey...we have a problem."

"What?"

"Forgive me if I have to be so...childish, but...we have a really, _really_ BIG problem--"

Mickey leant back, and listened. And as soon as Xemnas was finished, he knew that 'really BIG' was something of an understatement.

----------------------

It rained.

Heck, it _always_ rained here--puddles never seemed to disappear in the paved streets, reflecting the neon lights of a nonexistent shop. The Black Market was something to see here--and heck, they really _did_ sell blood. And in various flavors too...Weird. He bought three cases of the paopu tetra paks; better to stick to something familiar. Honestly...it tasted refreshing.

Gah.

He discovered that he was something of a legend here in the World That Never Was (and he discovered with a much greater shock that he could now actually _converse_ with Nobodies and Heartless alike--it shouldn't have surprised him, since he _was_ half of both. He suspected, however, that he could've carried a decent conversation with them before if he only _listened_). Nobodies doing their trade stopped and stared at him as he went into the Black Market (_such_ a fitting name)-- and Heartless gaped at him. Wooh. He was like the head honcho there.

He had dealt with a Gambler named Marty--who stammered everytime Sora talked to him. Hmm. He set the now-empty tetra pack of paopu-flavored blood (Sora didn't have the stomach to ask _what_ blood it was, but it suspiciously tasted like--uhm. Uh.) beside him and yawned.

It rained, it poured, and the sky never darkened, since it _was_ already dark with nothingness.

"That sounds wrong," Sora whispered to himself, leaning back onto the bench. Darkness was something...nothing was..._nothing_. Hah. Heck weird. Here he was, sitting on a bench, getting drenched in the rain, pondering his existence. Of course, there was other more productive things to do, like try killing the Organization, or try killing the King, or try and see how many Darksides he could summon, or so many other things.

He looked up into the stormy sky, grey clouds roiling across inky blackness, and felt raindrops pelting his face mercilessly. He supposed it felt cold, he _knew_ it felt cold, but he had lost the ability to distinguish between temperatures this morning.

_That's the fate of a Heartless, buddyboy. Ain't it quaint? You'll be able to survive in the most extreme of--wait. You can't survive, you're already DEAD!_

Sora, for the first time, laughed with his Antiform.

"Sora?"

He tore his eyes from the heavens and focused on the vision of white before him. Sheltered below a pure white umbrella, a pale Naminé stood beside his bench, white dress and white sandals unsmeared by water and mud.

His eyes narrowed. "Jeez, Naminé, you _seriously_ should get something _not_ in white."

She laughed nervously. "Uhm...aren't you going back to the Castle?"

"What?" he asked mildly. "Someone (it left a bitter taste in his throat--no longer were they Nobodies, but Somebodies, all on account of his sacrifice) looking for me up there?"

"N-no... but Sora, you're soaking wet! At least you should borrow one of Roxas' coats if you want to go out in the rain."

He put as much contempt as he could fit into one syllable. "No."

Borrowing a coat once again was like affirming that he was a Nobody, that he had lost all emotion save for pain (and he'd very dearly like to feel physical pain, but that feeling had been denied to him already), sorrow, and hatred, that he could never live his life (at this Antiform snorted, _buddyboy you're already dead, what's there to live?_) back in his home, that he'll never touch his Princess again. He'll never spar with Riku again, for most likely his best friend would kill him on sight. He'll never go to school, since the people there would probably kill him too (thus the set-up of lessons with Vexen--cripes, the guy was a creepy one).

"But--aren't you cold? You'll get sick!" She pressed on, her white fingers clutching the white handle of her umbrella harder.

Sora stared at her straight in the eyes, and she flinched. "I'm not cold. I can't feel how warm or cold it is, Naminé. I lost that when I woke up today."

"Oh." The blonde stared at the ground, shuffling her pale white feet, toeing a stray puddle of water in front of her.

"And I won't mind getting sick...I supposed I'll be happy, at_ least_ I can still feel something--"

True, true, full Nobodies were just like any other mortal--they could feel physical sensation, get scalded by coffee, get brain-frozen by ice cream...only difference was that they had no emotions of their own; they could only remember what they were feeling.

Sora? He was a whole other matter. For one, he had learnt that Nobody and Heartless was _not_ a good combination. Given the chance, he'd give up all his emotions just to be a _full_ Nobody instead of a half one attached to a Heartless. But no matter how fervent the wish was, no dice.

_You're stuck with me, buddyboy._

He could feel emotional pain, sadness, and anger because _that_ was all Heartless felt, actually. Heartless also had no physical distinguishers--meaning all Sora felt was a numbness that didn't even qualify as a feeling; he proved that when Axel had shot a Firaga at him and he didn't feel any warmth at all. Or when Vexen accidentally froze part of his Heartless arm-- Sora thought a something had broken judging from the way his bone snapped with an audible sound, but that was all. At least Vexen had healed it immediately, Sora didn't spend his time wondering whether his arm was broken or not.

In exchange, darkness gave him heightened senses. Add that to his being a Keyblade Master, _and_ the Key to Kingdom Hearts--you get a Heartless and a Nobody feared above all others, even Xemnas (well, maybe _slightly_ for the Nobodies, but whatever--Sora had an army of Heartless all waiting for him to follow his command). One unspoken word, and a Darkside would rise before him.

This summoning business was fun. Ha.

And once he had been the one to exterminate these creatures. But now...he sympathized (a false feeling...he supposed it would go away in time) with them, those without hearts and doomed to walk the earth searching for something to fill their emptiness.

"Well, at _some_ point," Sora looked up, Naminé had decided to talk again, "you _have _ to stop your angsting streak...Lexaeus _should_ be up and cooking soon enough (thus bringing back the memory of attacking the hulking Nobody--what? Sora gladly gve credit to Antiform for that one), and it's, I think, Salad Night..."

"I guess..." At least he had his senses to taste and everything. "Now go away, Naminé."

Her cerulean eyes widened. "What?" she asked in a hurt voice.

Sora rolled his eyes (well, only one, you couldn't exactly roll a pure yellow eye, could you?). "Didn't you hear me? Go away and leave me alone, witch."

She _was_ definitely hurt by that one, and Sora enjoyed it...even though the small sliver of light remaining in his ruined soul said he shouldn't be.

_Enjoy! Enjoy! Pain! Nobody's here to control me anyway,_ Antiform chuckled slyly. Sora had a vague idea of who that Nobody was...that's another one to add to his hitlist.

Naminé blinked painfully and took a step back. "You need help, Sora," she said in a clear voice.

"I've told you once, and I'm telling you again. I. Don't. Need. Your. Help." He said offhandedly, examining his nails, wondering whether he should sharpen them more. "Leave me alone, witch," he repeated.

"I have a name, you know," she snapped, a tear falling down her white cheek.

"I know, witch," he laughed, lacing his fingers behind his head.

Naminé paused. "Sora...you've changed."

Sora laughed even louder. "We've got a bright one here! Go to the top of the class, Nam!"

"You don't have to be like this, Sora. We can help you," she asked pleadingly. "We can help you cope; and we'll find a way to bring you back, we'll find a way, they're all helping--"

"You can't."

"Sora--"

"Sora's dead--stop asking for him," he growled. Naminé recoiled.

"He was shattered along with his heart one all Hallow's eve ago--He died back then. He's not coming back, you're not going to get back Mr. Happy Go Lucky just like _that_." He snapped his fingers for emphasis.

"Then who am I talking to now?"

"A fallen Keyblade Master," he said bitterly. "Betrayed by someone whom he placed his trust in, and paid for it with his existence and his heart. A freak--a half Heartless, half Nobody, a danger to everyone around him. One who once protected the realm of light, but is now shunned by it. A Wielder who loved and lost..." Sora trailed off, emotional pain clogging his throat. He scrubbed away the bloody tear his Heartless eye wept.

"We _can _help you if you'd just let us," she said firmly.

"No."

_No freakin' way. What are you, some poor kid to be pitied on?_

"I don't need your pity or mercy, Naminé. Tell the others that too."

Her face fell. "I just might give up..."

"Good for you."

She heaved a sigh. "...come up soon."

"Leave now, witch."

Naminé gave him a weak smile before turning on her heels and walking away. Sora watched impassively as her white umbrella faded from sight.

"I don't need anyone---no-one could understand," he whispered, his words drowned by the pounding of the rain.

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**A/N: **Angst is _such_ a nice thing to write about. Anyway...sorry again for the delay...

No review replies...I have a class in TEN MINUTES. Wooh.

As I said...I'm sad...why haven't you been reviewing, guys? WHY? -cries- If you don't review, I won't have my inspiration to write, and then...well, you know, you won't have the next chapter to read...:'c.

Moving on... From this chapter on, no quotes, okay? Aside from the fact that I still haven't typed the next chapter yet, having a preview quote might spoil the next chapter...hahah.

Ja ne!


	21. Blood Spilled

**A/N: **I WILL END THIS A SOKAI. HOLD YER HORSES, PEOPLE. _Italics_, when in paragraphs, are flashbacks. Rated T for language, suggestive themes, and violence. Cripes, I sound like a video game.

**Disclaimer: **No. I don't.

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**XXI: B**_l**o**o_**d **_Spi**ll**ed_

-----------------------------

_Cough cough cough._

Professor Vandalise muttered, and coughed, and blinked; all at the same time. He usually did that when he was forced to sit down for long periods. Too bad he _was_ the Academy Registrar. His eyes had already started to itch; sorting files yellowed with age was not fun.

The door to his office swung open, and one of the newly hired professors walked in--well, actually, two of them. Pfft. It had been rather..._suspicious_, their hiring.

Tossing his mahogany braid back over his shoulder, Vandalise pushed his glasses up his nose and motioned for Zexion to come closer, Larxene clinging to his hand. Hm. For the months they had been teaching here, the pair had been almost inseparable; Larxene was lucky to have a man such as that. And the pair were hell good at what they did--Never had the course had so many passing students. There _was_ a rumor going around, though, that Professor Zexion was using darkness as his weapon of choice. Pfft. He dismissed it as utter poppycock--it seemed as true as Organization XIII. Ha.

"Yes?"

"We..." the blue-haired scientist glanced uneasily at the blonde mage. "We have word from Sora Hikari--"

As much as Vandalise didn't like to widen his eyes, he was forced to do so, because of the sheer impact of the words "Sora" and "Hikari". Probably one of the most famous students in Destiny Academy. "What?"

Zexion frowned. "He requests his enrollment be cancelled."

He froze. "W-what...? I mean, Hikari's not been attending for --"

"Exactly my point."

Vandalise stared at him suspiciously. "And _how_ do I know this is true? Why can't the boy himself do this?"

This time, it was Larxene who spoke up. "He's in no condition to...do that, by himself."

"I don't believe you."

The two exchanged glances, and sighed resignedly. Zexion spoke up.

"Fine, Professor Vandalise. We do this the hard way."

"What do you mean--"

Strands of darkness suddenly rose from the ground, and the room suddenly had more than the obnoxious smell of paperwork. Ugh...it was straight out of that Hikari boy's tales; darkness enclosing the heart and--

Oh.

"What the bloody _hell_! Zexion!" he yelled, scrambling to his feet and drawing out his own weapon; a three-foot long single-edged sword. Were they trying to kill him or something?

"Believe us when we say the Wielder can't do this on his own," Larxene said quietly. She raised her hand and three kunais coalesced into her fingers. From thin air. Okay. Vandalise, breathe. These are just two bloody teenagers with raging hormones; you, on the other hand, has had twenty years of battle experience.

He forced a smile. "If you wanted a duel, you should've just asked."

Zexion ran a hand through his hair tiredly. "All Sora wanted was to cancel his enrolment."

The strands of darkness continued to rise.

"Professor Vandalise," the blonde tilted her head thoughtfully. "This time, you can trust Organization XIII's word."

Vandalise burst into laughter -- they really _thought_ that stupid group of kids existed? Obviously, Zexion was just beginning to dabble in the arts of black magic, and this priestess-girl was in for the ride. Poor, delusional teenagers. "Good lord, do you really believe those nincompoops _exist_?"

The two exchanged glances again, a look that plainly said 'The old geezer doesn't believe us. Should we kill him now?', but he took it as 'Oh God, we're screwed, Vandalise doesn't believe us'.

"We _are_ part of those..._nincompoops_, Vandalise," Zexion said coldly, walking backwards until he disappeared into the shadows.

"Never insult the Thirteenth Order," this time, it was Larxene who spoke up. "Especially not number _Twelve!_" she hissed, and she threw her three kunais at him. However, he deflected it easily with his sword.

"You may think you're good, _number Twelve_," he said mockingly, "But children like you don't stand a chance against me!"

He blocked four more kunais. The girl seemed to be on endless supply of them. No matter. After this little incident, he'd never see their faces again. He'll make sure they got fired -- they deserved it.

"Vandalise."

His blood froze. That was Zexion whispering in his ear in a very dangerous voice. "Don't insult my Larxene."

He once again, forced a smile. "What are _you_ going to do about it?"

"I can kill you."

Vandalise jabbed his elbow backwards, but all he met was empty air. When he looked up, he saw Zexion staring at him calmly, and Larxene still had at least five kunais ready to throw.

"I _told_ him to do this himself," the girl huffed, and spun on her feet. "I'll call him..."

"He's probably in Fragment Crossing."

He raised an eyebrow. What were they talking about? Fragment Crossing? Call _him? _Was this supposed to scare him or something?

"After this, I'll make sure you two never step foot in this school again," he said coolly.

"Vandalise," Larxene paused, back turned to him. "I never really wanted to teach in this academy in the first place."

"Give up this stupid charade of Organization XIII. I may overlook the fact that you tried to kill --" the words died in his throat, as Larxene summoned what looked very much like a portal, and stepped inside with a whispered 'Keep it open' to Zexion.

A legendary portal to the Corridors of darkness. Something he himself had studied, but never had the resources to see. The only beings, according to the textbooks, that could open the corridors were of the realm of darkness.

Oh. And Sora had told them that this Organization XIII _was_ of the realm of darkness.

Could it be? Were these people telling the truth?

"What! You could've just _let me_ portal here! I could've practiced, you know!"

A boyish voice snapped him out of his thoughts. He shivered involuntarily as he stared at the portal, because that voice sounded awfully familiar.

"You _could've_ done it on your own, Wielder," Larxene huffed, hands firmly on Sora's shoulders, marching him out of the portal.

Sora...?

Vandalise screamed, and fainted.

--------------------

He sped (not actually sped, for quick-running was prohibited in the halls. Let's just say he's power-walking) down the pristine white corridors of Destiny Academy, the crowd parting for the legendary Riku to walk through. The boy _was_ a legend; varsity blitzball goalie (Tidus had taken over the captain post), brilliant student, student body chair, and of course, Knight of Disney Castle.

However, one legend overshadowed his: the enigma that was Sora Hikari.

Well, he couldn't do anything about _that_.

No matter how he interrogated Roxas and Naminé, he couldn't get answers to his questions. And he _had_ tried asking them for months now. All the two Nobodies said was that they were all good and fine (like being a Nobody could actually be considered good).

...and it was actually nice to watch how Roxas coped without his Keyblades. The blonde confided to them that Xemnas had forbidden him to wield the huge Keys, in fear of being discovered as Sora's Nobody. Not that anyone here believed in Nobodies and such. Speaking of Nobodies. Zexion _was_ doing a pretty good job as Lifestream Physics professor. Well, screw 'pretty good', Number Six (as Roxas had told him) was superb in his own element -- in every departamental exam that his class had taken, they had a 98 passing rate. Even year II had coped with year III Physics, and some of them were even better than students older than them. Riku himself had been, in the very least, stunned to see that he had recieved full marks on one particularly grueling long exam (Never mind that the almost the whole class _had_ gotten almost perfect marks).

Roxas and Naminé had told him that there were another two Organization members teaching in the Academy...Riku's blonde Healing Arts teacher was actually number Twelve, the Savage Nymph (too bad she didn't add it to her credentials..._then_ she'd probably be a legend herself). And that Professor Kisaragi was actually Zexion's _girlfriend_.

- - - - -

_"And yeah...Larx's Zexion's...uhh," Roxas trailed off, grimacing._

_"Girlfriend. Yeah," Naminé finished for him, before spearing a leaf of lettuce and chewing on it. She spat out the onion and went on ,"it's pretty complicated...Axel likes Larx too. Don't look at me like that, Rox."_

_Riku stared at her. "No offense, but I thought Nobodies couldn't exactly _love_."_

_Roxas choked on a crouton._

_The blonde girl stifled a laugh._

_"We remember how to feel, Riku," number Thirteen said flatly._

_Naminé stifled a laugh once more. _

_- - - - -_

The other professor was number Eight, Flurry of Dancing Flames, Axel Fujiwara. Riku had caught rumors of the temperamental pyromaniac -- he had, reportedly, burned down Pavilion III of the Spellcasting building, much to the delight of the students. Axel was known as the most approachable professor -- they said, most of the time, he acted not as a teacher, but one of the students.

_That_ was seriously cool. Riku wished he had Spellcasting instead of World's History.

Panting, he skidded to a stop in front of room 305. He sighed in relief when he saw the professor hadn't dismissed their class yet. He sneaked a peek inside, and found the redwine-haired girl studiously taking down notes. Materia Handling _was_ her favorite subject, after all.

Kairi. He grinned at nothing in particular, making some girls shoot suggestive looks his way. He didn't notice them, however.

Kairi Dalmasca. His girlfriend.

- - - - -

_Today was the day. Wooh. Riku should be jumping with joy now, but instead, he's feeling like someone emptied a ton of psychedelically-colored butterflies in his stomach._

_He'd watched her cry._

_He'd watched her get mad._

_He'd watched her swear that someday _he'd_ pay._

_He'd watched her break down and cry once again._

_All Kairi needed was someone...and Riku had a hunch that someone was him. Ah. He had had a crush on her ever since they were ten. Him and Sora had fought over her, yet the girl had fallen in love with his brunette comrade._

_He tried to understand and keep silent, yes he did. But when Sora left...the old feelings came back._

_Oh cripes, Kairi looked so helpless. He HAD to do something._

_So WHY was he still standing here, at the edge of the school grounds, watching the red-haired girl sleep under a huge, leafy, and very fiery fire tree? It was straight out of a postcard -- an angel asleep under a blizzard of fiery orange petals. Beside her, Selphie yawned, and stretched her arms. The brunette nudged Kairi a little bit, but she only shifted slightly. Shrugging, Selphie got up, and left a Post-it stuck to Kairi's binder._

_Okay, Riku. You've fought Roxas, you've fought Ansem's Heartless, you've fought Maleficent, and you've fought the darkness of your heart, and you've won all of those. This should be a piece of cake._

_Now that he thought about it, he'd rather fight Maleficent once again._

_Steeling himself, he cut across the grass and walked to Kairi, who was still asleep. Pssh. It _was_ after school, anyway. He could take the whole afternoon if he wanted._

_It would be much, much easier if the grounds were empty. Unfortunately, it was packed with the usual student crowd after dismissal -- people training, casting spells, gossiping, or staring around...like what they were doing right now._

_Trying to smile casually, Riku sat down, cross-legged, in front of the slumbering Princess of Heart. Staring at her seemed to calm him. Yeah. He could stare at her the whole day (not that he hadn't done that before). He watched as Kairi shifted her position, and as a result, toppled off-balance onto the soft grass. He couldn't help but chuckle._

_"Riku! Stop laughing!" she pouted indignantly, standing up and dusting herself off. Hmm. If Riku looked close enough, he might be able to see under her skirt. He smirked, and Kairi hit him on the head. "You pervert!"_

_"Can't help myself--" he tried to explain, but he was laughing too hard at the amount of red now suffusing Kairi's face._

_The girl knelt and punched him playfully in the chest. "Oh, shut it."_

_"Like that actually hurt."_

_"Just because you're a knight now..." she trailed off, apparently unable to think of a witty comeback. "Uh."_

_Riku fought the urge to pounce and just pin Kairi to the tree and kiss the living daylights out of her. Gah. Hormonal imbalance right here. He blushed involuntarily._

_"What?" Kairi asked, peering up at him. "Why're you all red, Riku-poo?" she giggled at the use of her (proudly made-up; Riku swears something _had_ gotten into Kairi, that morning after the Knighting) nickname for him. It sent shivers down his spine everytime she used it, because it sounded dangerously close to a term of endearment normally reserved for couples._

_"U-uh," he spluttered. _

_NOW OR NEVER._

_Wooh. _

_"What! Spill it!" she hollered, crawling nearer to him._

_"I...Gah! Kairi! I..." he gulped, willing himself not to pass out. "I like you, okay!"_

_Her eyebrows furrowed. "Like yeah. I like you too."_

_His eyes widened, and he slapped himself mentally. _Not that, Kai!_he wanted to scream._

_"What! Riku Alcaia!" she exclaimed in a very dangerous voice, her eyes narrowing. "Wooh. You did something that's going to make me mad, didn't you? What the heck did you do?"_

_"I fell in love with you," the words slipped out of his lips quietly. _

_Oops._

_He didn't really mean to say that. He was supposed to declare his undying love for her in a much more manlier way...sweep her off her feet if you will. Not like _that_! So...melodramatic!_

_Kairi had sat back down on the grass inaudibly. She had her eyes closed, and she was taking deep, calming breaths. Riku knew that she knew that he had a crush on her for the longest time, but was wise enough to stay out of her and Sora's way. But now that the other Keyblade Master was gone..._

_"You _do_ know, Riku," she said to no one in particular, staring up into the branches of the fire tree, "that Sora has a place reserved in my heart."_

_He cringed, and fought the urge to throw up. Oh cripes, he should have known, however Kairi acted, she still loved--_

_"...but I'm willing to open my heart once again."_

_Riku glanced up, and aquamarine met blue-violet. _

_"Don't worry," she blinked, as if still surprised from what she had said. "You're not in Sora's shadow. I love you as Riku, and as Riku only."_

_"You...you love me?" he was unable to stop himself. "Kairi? I've only asked you now, and--"_

_Her bottom lip trembled, and she bowed her head. "You're here with me. You're with me. It's all that matters. You didn't leave me alone..."_

_He cringed once again. Great. A declaration of love, and he made her cry. Yeah. Way to go, Mr. Smooth. Riku set his messenger bag aside and reached out a hand to pat her on the back--_

_--and ended up with an armful of sobbing Princess._

_"Kairi..." he said softly, stroking her hair. The grin he had been suppressing finally managed to worm its way out...nevermind that his heart was galloping. Kairi _loved him_. That _was_ all that mattered._

_"Thank you, thank you," she was whispering over and over, her tears staining the white of his uniform. "Riku, thank you..."_

_- - - - - _

That was seven months ago.

He grinned again. So far, so good. The bell rung, and students burst out of the classroom and spilled out into the hall into small groups. Riku picked up her scent, and she immediately appeared out of the sea of faces.

"Kairi!"

"Riku," she grinned, and he swept her up in a tight embrace. He never, ever got tired of her scent...she always smelt of strawberries. Probably because her entire bathroom amenities was of the fruit. He _should_ know; he gave her the set. It gladdened him to know that the redhead used his gift.

"C'mon," she said, unwrapping herself and motioning to him. "Let's get some ice cream, I'm starving!"

She bounced down the hall, giggling all the way. Riku watched her bemusedly...it _was_ much better to see this; her happy instead of brooding over Sora. It was nice to know that he, Riku, made her happy.

"Ri_ku_!" she called, looking over her shoulder. "What are you waiting for?"

"Yeah, Kai," he sped up, and fell into step beside her.

He smiled, and blushed, lowering his head, as he felt Kairi's small and warm hand intertwine with his.

-----------------------

"Seriously. You didn't actually have to kill him."

Sora rolled one normal eye, knowing that there was no way in hell he could visibly roll his other Heartless eye. He then stuck out his tongue at Zexion for good measure. "What? He attacked me first."

"But not to kill," Larxene pointed out, straightening herself and letting Vandalise's wrist fall limp on the floor.

"He thought I was a Heartless, Larx," he defended, wiping off the Dark Keyblade on the professor's white uniform. Hell yeah he did! As soon as he revived his former Academy registrar, professor Vandalise had slashed his sword into Sora's stomach. Now that he thought about it, Sora glanced down at his vest disdainfully. Cripes...another night with needle and thread.

"Sora, you _are_ half-Heartless," Zexion reminded him, helping Larxene step over the body and off the pool of blood.

"That's not what I meant," he growled, shaking off the blood from his fingers. He pulled out a tetra pack of paopu-flavored blood from a belt pocket, and took a long sip. "So...what do we do with this?"

"It's your mess," number Six said flatly, before casually wiping his shoes clean with a scrunched-up exam paper. Larxene did the same, and they chucked the used balls of pulp into the Corridors. "You fix it."

"Awww," he said resignedly, scratching his head and taking another sip. The blood seemed to invigorate him; and he had already gotten used to drinking the stuff...he _had_ been drinking it for months now. "Where're you two going?" he smirked. "Getting a room or something...?"

Larxene blushed brightly, but she grinned. "Maybe..."

"Larxene!" Zexion said hotly, blushing furiously himself. "...you're a priestess!"

"Not anymore. Besides, I'm with a guy whose nickname is Zex--"

"Gah! Food! We're going to _eat out!"_

"See you, Wielder!" she laughed, and pushed the door open.

"...Sora, if you're my partner in training tonight, you're dead," Zexion said in a murderous voice, which was kind of ruined by the fact that he was blushing spectacularly.

"I'm already dead, Zexy!" he said cheerily, "Have fun with Larxene!"

Number Six stiffened slightly, before stomping out the door.

Sora sipped some more, and stared forlornly at Professor Vandalise's body, not a single thought of remorse or guilt entering his train of thought. None had, in the past months. He _had_ completely forgone guilt and remorse.

Pssh. Sighing, Sora decided to let him be...maybe the staff would blame it on a Heartless ambush. Well, Heartless attcks normally left no bodies, but still...and it was partly true. Sora was a half-Heartless. He walked over to the computer terminal and searched through the records, and cancelled his enrollment himself. Pssh. If he had done this in the middle of the night or something, he wouldn't be in this bloody mess.

He spun around on his heels, and wiping his feet on the white (now maroon) doormat, he walked out, into the Academy he once studied in...

...maybe he could see what had happened to his...

..._friends._..

--------------------

"...and so, Tidus just stands up and laughs for no reason at all," Kairi laughed. "Yuna was _mad_. She refused to talk to him for today."

"Knowing Yuna, she won't stand it," Riku said beside her, the beginnings of a devious grin curling up the edges of his lips. "Wanna bet?"

She narrowed her eyes. "What do you wager?"

He visibly fought to keep a deadpan face, and he stared straight forward. "A kiss," he said slyly.

Kairi raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah?"

"You're getting kissing lessons from me."

She spluttered, and she squeezed his fingers as hard as she could. "Are you saying I can't kiss good!"

"Hey, you said it yourself," he chuckled, releasing her hand and putting an arm around her shoulders instead, pulling her closer as they walked across the school grounds to the cafeteria. Her last class before dismissal was in the building opposite the school canteen; it made for very long walks and very irritating stares.

She pursed her lips, raising a hand to grasp Riku's. They were _still _getting stared at.

_Don't mind them, KaiKai._

There was that voice once again...but Kairi had learned to listen to it, even rely on it in proper situations. It seemed to be her conscience. She really appreciated it, yes she did, because it was that voice that pushed her to forget _him_.

"Waaiit, Kai," Riku asked, turning his head to look at her. "What are _you_ wagering?"

She thought for a while, stroking his fingers as she did. She smiled, a smile very similar to Riku's. "Me too. Kissing lessons, Riku."

She could almost hear him smirk.

Giggling, she leant further into him, picking up the faint scent of his cologne; a mixture of the smell of rain and the freshness of green apples...wooh. He smelled good.

"Prepare to _lose_," he said softly, kissing the top of her head.

"You wish, Riku."

"--and yeah, Pavilion Three'd be good as new...as soon as I burn down Pav Four!" Laughter.

Kairi stopped dead in her tracks, heart pounding in her throat. Riku might've thrown a concerned and bewildered look at her, but she didn't notice.

"Hey, you must be Alcaia! And...oh no."

"_You!_" she yelled. The fiery red hair, the skinny arms, the two green tattoos, the vividly teal eyes...her kidnapper.

"_AXEL!"_

-----------------------

Sora raised an arm, and shielded his eyes. There was a good side, and a bad side, to being here in the late afternoon.

Good? The shadows were longer, giving him plenty of opportunities to disappear into darkness (one of Zexion's more useful teachings). Bad? The sun. There was the sun, in all its bright and sunset-y glory. Now, when you've been spending almost all of your days in a place where the sun had no place in...seeing sunlight actually _stung_.

Pssh. He sighed, and took another sip.

He gazed across the covered walkway--so far, when the cloaking he had woven had slipped, the students though him only as a hallucination-- and his eyes fell on the wide, sun-covered expanse that was the school quadrangle.

Arrgh. It wasn't too long ago that _he_ walked the concrete, carefree and happy. Now...there was no way in hell he'd cross it. Too...sunny.

His carton was almost empty, and he had no other blood-pack on him. Pssh. He could just as easily portal out and get a new one. He decided to carry on his tour elsewhere, when he heard a shrill scream that made him freeze.

It wasn't the scream, but the voice.

Smiling, Sora took the chance, and strolled across the grounds, to the source of the commotion.

------------------------

"_What are YOU doing here!"_ Kairi yelled, before pulling herself free of Riku's grasp in a very rough manner. Cripes, Kairi was strong when she was angry.

Axel looked like a deer caught in the headlights... a deer that had just realized that the headlights belonged to a steamroller. The pyromaniac caught his eye. "Well, Alcaia, I think your..._girlfriend_...is going a bit berserk here..."

He looked like he was in control of the situation, but if Nobodies could feel fear, Axel was most definitely feeling it now. Riku could see that from the way he stood straight, and from the way he stood on alert.

"You bastard! You _were the one who kid--"_

"Now, now, Dalmasca," Axel said, waving a dismissive hand. "Keep it down..."

A crowd had started to form around them, and some were cheering on Axel. Riku put his hands firmly on Kairi's shoulders, but she broke free of his grip. She looked livid. "Riku! He was the guy who took me to the Castle That Never Was! God, he was the reason me and Naminé almost got killed!"

"Kairi--" he clamped his mouth shut.

Never make a Princess of Heart angry, that he knew.

The redwine-haired girl brought down her hands, palm facing the ground. Almost immediately, a circle of light flared to life underneath her feet, three feet around her in every direction; in which the outline of Kingdom Hearts glowed. Students around her hurriedly backed away; some even screamed, as pillars of light flared up from the ground.

His eyes widened; was _this_ the power a Princess of Heart held?

Axel had already summoned his own chakrams of fire, and held them in a defensive position. Sighing, Riku called to his own Keyblade--

"RELEASE!"

...That was Naminé's voice.

The blonde girl had shouldered him out of the way, and put both pale hands on Kairi's trembling shoulders. His girlfriend swayed slightly on her feet, and the circle faded away.

"Professor Fujiwara!" she said loudly, stomping on Riku's foot as she did. "What a demonstration!"

"Yeah!" Riku said, cottoning on. "Great magic there, prof!"

"Huh?" For a second, Axel looked lost, before brightening up. "Yes, yes, Miss Dalmasca...your cousin shows great reflexes! Uh, well, guys, if you want another demonstration, follow me!" He spun on his heels and hurriedly walked inside another building, most of the crowd trailing behind him and chatting excitedly. Some people stayed behind, with praise for Kairi and her magical abilities.

_If you only knew, _Riku thought, as he stared at their faces.

Naminé hissed at him. "Take care of your girlfriend," she pouted, motioning for him to come support the girl, for Kairi was still weak on her feet.

"You chained this memory down?" he asked, voice lowered so that Kairi wouldn't hear.

"Didn't have a choice," she whispered back, heaving her shoulder bag up her arm.

"How long are we going to keep this up?"

She paused, eyes scanning the crowd herself. "As long as the King says so," she said slowly. "Uh...Riku, I gotta run, I have, uh, a book to return! Yeah! Uhm...see you!"

Naminé literally sprinted across the quad...into the wrong building.

"What the hell was _that_?" he asked aloud.

"What...?" Kairi swayed on her feet, and Riku had to bend down slightly and put his arms around her waist to steady her. He gave in to the urge to rest his chin on her shoulder, and he could feel the girl shudder slightly. "What...tell me, what was I doing..?"

"What do you mean, what you were doing?" he whispered in his best surprised voice. "You and Professor Fujiwara put on one hell of a demonstration!"

"We did?" she asked softly, placing her clammy hands on top of his own.

He kissed her ear. "Yeah..."

"OI! Riku, Kai! Stop the PDA!" a voice that sounded very much like Roxas' hollered, and sure enough, the boy slid past them on a skateboard and skidded to a stop. Riku straightened up and glared at him. _His _cerulean blue eyes were sparkling in amusement. "Some of us would like _not_ to lose our appetites."

"Way to go, Rox! Yeah!" Tidus yelled, jogging up to them from behind.

"Dude, you're just saying that 'cos Yuna's not talking to you," Roxas stared at him, eyebrow raised.

"Thanks for reminding me," he replied sarcastically. Riku laughed, and Kairi laughed soon after.

A chill ran down the platinum-haired Wielder's spine. Perplexed, he looked around the afternoon crowd...someone was watching them. Of course, they _were_ watching him, but the feeling he got was different, somehow.

"Riku?" Kairi asked up at him, eyes concerned, her fingers slipping into his once more.

"It's nothing, just thought of something...so Rox, where're you two going?"

"To the cafeteria," the blonde shrugged, and jerked a thumb at Tidus. "He's gonna see if Yuna's there."

"I was not!"

"Admit it!"

Roxas and Tidus were bickering all the way to the school's cafeteria, and Kairi was giggling at their supposed serious 'argument'. Riku looked back once more, and tried to laugh along with them...but he couldn't.

For as he looked back, into the face of the student crowd, he thought he saw the face of his best friend...

...a shadowed Sora.

Shaking his head vehemently, he dismissed it as a trick of the light...Sora was somewhere out there on other worlds, sealing Keyholes or something.

Most definitely _not_ here.

Putting a possessive arm around Kairi's waist, he, and the others, walked into the cool of the cafeteria.

-------------------------

He crushed the cardboard box easily, and threw it into the nearest wastebasket.

Naminé had seen him, and the girl had enough sense to scramble away--graceful exit though. Way not to seem obvious. It was good that he had cloaked his own scent, that way, Riku hadn't noticed him...

...except when his _'best friend'_ looked back.

That one was deliberate. He wanted to strike fear in Riku...because...Kairi...was his _girlfriend_. He grimaced at the memory; Riku acting all so affectionate and everything, and Kairi actually returning the affection.

It hurt. Much more so than Vandalise's sword in his stomach (which was not saying something, because Sora didn't feel any phiysical pain at all). But still...it hurt. Unspeakable, excruciating, emotional and mental pain.

She was _his_ princess...

Sora frowned, and dropped down onto his knees onto the concrete. He gently eased out a black (what else color?)looseleaf notebook out of his red belt pouch. Concentrating, he broke the lock he had placed on it: a lock that could only be opened by a Keyblade Master. He rifled through the white pages, and stopped at the first empty page he came across--the last page, incidentally. He fished around the other belt pouch for a pen, and he tore off the cap with his teeth.

A record. Sora had kept a record...a journal, if you would call it. From the time he recieved the letter. He supposed it'd help him retain his sanity. He'd make sure he destroyed it, once he found a way to restore control of Antiform.

_If_ he found a way.

Pssh...like anyone would read the stupid things he wrote.

He put pen to paper, and feelings into words. It was like therapy; ever since King Mickey had sent him _that_ letter (which was, incidentally, inserted into his journal--stapled, even).

Ahh...he felt this bloodthirst again...maybe he should've brought extra blood tetra paks.

Ink ran, and tears ran, spilling on the white ruled paper. Sora bit his lip, and struggled to continue writing down his thoughts, ignoring the trembling of his hand as he fought the urge of bloodlust. Stupid Heartless cravings.

He then realized he'd been addressing his last sentence to the redwine-locked Princess of Heart.

_cripes, she won't even read this_

_need blood NOW_

Sora wasn't the one who wrote _that_. Antiform was mad. Yes, he was. Gritting his teeth, he put his pen to the paper, trying to continue writing. However, his pen slipped, and together with it, the looseleaf notebook and journal of his.

Cursing, he reached over...and he saw the familiar folded bloodstained square of paper.

King Mickey's note.

The one who started all of this freakin' madness he called his life and death.

The one who actually _betrayed_ him.

The one who told his Riku and Kairi that he had left them, when actually, he was one of Disney Castle's courtyards, bleeding his guts out.

...the one who'd pay.

Rage sparked in the ruins of Sora's soul, cowering the small sliver of light that remained into submission. This time, Sora wholeheartedly (pardon the term, but that was _what_ Sora did) embraced the darkness himself, determined to get one thing.

Revenge.

Sora relinquished control, and Antiform jumped to his feet, grinning. He looked around -- into the stunned and horrified faces of these young and innocent students. With Sora's control gone (his alter ego was actually humming in the background), the cloaking he had woven had fallen also.

With pitch-black fingers, he picked up Sora's journal and pen, and scribbled in it a few words. Antiform then threw the notebook unceremoniously into the bushes nearby, and Sora was too preoccupied with humming to notice. No matter. It seems that the Wielder had finally understood what it meant to be _Heartless_.

Grinning toothily, Antiform snapped his fingers and summoned a horde of Neoshadows, enough to turn the whole _school _into Heartless.

"Have fun, kids," he rasped to nobody in particular, lacing his fingers behind his head as he watched the students fend off the Heartless with their assorted weapons. He raised an eyebrow as he watched one of them finish off two Neoshadows in one blow...maybe they weren't so young anymore. Whoa. And that one girl --

_That's Ashe,_ Sora giggled. _A paladin_. _C'mon Antiform, we've got bigger fish to fry._

"Or, Sora," he laughed as he opened a portal amidst the screams, "a bigger _mouse_ to kill."

_Let's go._

_--------------------_

"What the _hell?" _

"Sir Riku, s-sir!" the terrified freshman stammered, his own mage's rod clamped tightly in his hands. "H-heartless attack!"

Uh. Here they were, talking about tomorrow's Twilight Town field trip, when the cafeteria doors suddenly burst open and a white-faced boy screaming 'Sir Riku!' rushed inside, weapon in hand. Kairi stared at the freshman. Heartless? It had _got_ to be a joke...Paladins made sure no Heartless got into the school's perimeter.

Unless...the Heartless came from _inside_. Impossible, though. Nobody had the ability to summon Heartless in the Academy, as far as she knew.

"Kai, stay here," Riku ordered, getting up from his seat, followed by Roxas and Tidus. He already had his Way to the Dawn in his hand, and the two blondes behind him had already had their own weapons drawn--Roxas with his twin shortswords, and Tidus with his Caladbolg.

"I'm on it!" a female voice called, and Kairi caught a blur of blonde running out the cafeteria's double doors she supposed was Naminé.

"What can _she_ do...?" Tidus asked in disbelief.

"More than we can if we just freakin' stand here!" Roxas shouldered his way past the surprised blonde. Twirling his swords, he sprinted out behind Naminé.

"I am _not_ staying here, Riku!" Kairi yelled, jumping to her feet and running behind Roxas. She grinned as she heard Riku curse under his breath.

-----------------------

"...King Mickey, there's someone here who asks for an audience."

He waved his hand dismissively without even looking up -- he was too preoccupied with poring over the records of Radiant Garden, trying to find a way to reverse the effect of the Knighting. "I'm busy, Adviser Eldric."

"B-but, Your Majesty," Terror laced his adviser's normally emotionless nasal voice. Mickey sighed. This visitor had probably threatened Eldric with decapitation or something out of desperation. It _had_ happened a good few times before.

"No, Eldric, I'm busy," he repeated, turning the page.

The sounds of rapidly shuffling feet on the carpet sounded, but King Mickey paid no heed. He _was_ a busy King.

"Y'know, King Mick, you _should_ start listening to your Advisers."

A chill ran down King Mickey's spine. He knew exactly who that voice belonged to--

"'cause that's why they're there; to _advise_ you on doing stupid things."

--a very pissed off Sora.

He looked up, and resisted the urge to empty the remains of his lunch on the carpeted marble. There, silhouetted against the archway to his study, was a slumped Eldric, neck broken. Over whom crouched a...monster.

"Oh God. Eldric!" He bellowed, "Sora! What have you done?"

"Antiform," the figure corrected him, straightening up. "But Sora's pissed. And so am I."

"You _bastard_!" King Mickey yelled, pushing back his chair and flipping onto the paper-littered table, Reverse Keyblade coalescing into his hand. "You _killed_ Sora!"

"Nuh-uh...this is _your_ fault, King Mick-o," Antiform tilted his head, and Mickey shivered. Two large, blank and pale yellow Heartless eyes stared back at him. "This is all your fault, yep, take the credit...but _that_," he motioned to the Keyblade clutched in his gloved hand, "is rightfully _mine_."

"Sora has his _own_ Kingdom Key," Mickey said quietly, breathing hard.

"Ah...but _that_ one is of the realm of light," Antiform grinned toothily (which made for a lot of fangs). "Yours is from the realm of darkness--it's ours, King Mick, since me and buddyboy are now...of the dark," he laughed. "That sounds so freakin' cheesy."

Mickey panted even harder, his throat constricting with nervousness. A Keyblade Master can choose to relinquish a particular Keyblade -- or he can be forced to. However, King Mickey has never met an opponent he couldn't defeat--he _was_ a Keyblade Master.

"You can't take away my Keyblade," he seethed, his Keyblade drawing deeply on the power of Kingdom Hearts.

Antiform laughed once more, and Mickey had never heard a more chilling sound.

"Ah, King Mickey...never underestimate the strength of a fallen Keyblade Master. Everything to win, and nothing to lose," the Heartless spread his palms open, "You might be surprised at what Sora can do for..."

Mickey charged, taking advantage of Antiform's seemingly helpless stance. He stumbled--Antiform's eyes had flashed sky blue. A split second later, he was thrown across the room, and he slammed into the bookshelf behind his desk.

"..._revenge."_

_---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

It might be too much...violent, ne? Violence is good -nods-, but in stories only, kiddies! Some Kairiku fluffiness in there, but if you're not a fan...well, you'd be glad to know this is a Sokai.

The fire tree...It _does_ exist! It's that huge tree whose flowers are really, really bright orange and red (thusly named fire tree...TT).

About the last names...Larxene picked Kisaragi 'cause she's quite a fast one too, like Yuffie. Axel made up his own name--he's a lazy kid nn. And Zexion? 'cause him and Riku are alike, in more ways than one. _That_ I leave it up to you to figure out.

I'm not doing replies anymore, 'cause I might really get kicked out if I go on doing the story reply thing.

Review. Please? 'cause it sucks if you spend two hours on a chapter and only a few people tell you whether it's okay or not. Flames are accepted.


	22. Celebration

**A/N:** Yay! Finally! An update!For the people going all 'Kairiku? Man, that's just _wrong_!', I tell you now--this is a SOKAI. Okay?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own it. No, I don't. Stop asking.

**-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**----------------------**

**XXII: _Ce_**_le**br**_**a**_t**io**n_

**----------------------**

Sora wrinkled his nose disdainfully, turning the page. This Marquis de Sade guy sure was a fan of pain-- Larxene was nowhere near _his_ sadism. He rubbed his Heartless eye, and sank back deeper into his pillow, yawning.

"Wielder."

He blinked. Yep--he felt someone was standing at his door, and was calling him. Aggh. Just when he was getting to the good part.

"Wiel_der._"

This time, Sora recognized number One's irritated voice. He lowered his book, and stared at the silver-haired Nobody silhouetted in the doorway. He smirked slightly when he saw Xemnas flinch--Sora staring always made him do that. Heck, Sora staring at anyone made them flinch. "Huh? Superior?"

Inwardly, he laughed--it felt that he truly was a part of Organization XIII now. Hm. And to think he was the one who actually killed these people. Some of them. He saw the Superior force down a smile, and scowl. "Sora, you've left the kitchen sink bloody again."

_Oh...riighht,_ Antiform whispered in his head, realization dawning on both of them--'cause Antiform had washed off there, and they kind of..._left_ the sink bloody.

Yeah. Mmm. Blood. No matter, Sora's bloodlust had already been temporarily satisfied. Grinning, he bolted up in bed and sat on the edge. "Oops. Sorry."

_I hate cleaning, _Antiform moaned, a mental image of him slapping his forehead filling Sora's mind's eye. He grinned even more broadly.

"Clean it up before dinner."

He stood up, and dusted imaginary dust from himself, beaming. "Yep. I'm going." 'cause if he took too long in the kitchen, Lexaeus might catch up with him. And being alone with a guy you left three-fourths dead isn't really a good idea. Especially if the guy's a hulking number Five named Lexaeus. Besides, he'd rather nothing spoil his day today.

"You seem happy today," Xemnas commented, as Sora passed him by the door.

"Heck yeah!" he exclaimed happily, knowing that Xemnas knew full well that Sora couldn't _feel_ real happiness. Whatever. He _was_ happy...'cause he got his Keyblade back. Pssh. King Mickey was pre-tty hard to defeat, though.

Number One had probably realized that something was up, because the next thing he asked was, "Who did you attack this time?"

Aww. Did he really attack people _that_ much?

_Maul would be _such_ a better term, buddyboy._

"...shut it," Sora muttered under his breath. Not having Roxas around sometimes seemed to be a bad idea. Sometimes it didn't. Gah. It confused him. He _did_ have his sane, and insane moments. "Pssh. Attack is _such_ a harsh word. I only...uh..._took back_ something."

Yep. That _was_ what he did. Technically. The blood was a secondary sort of thing.

Xemnas seemed to take this in stride. "Oh...okay. Clean the counters too, Sora."

"Glad to!" he nodded enthusiastically, drawing out his newly-acquired Keychain, intending to..._clean_ the Keyblade that came with it. 'cause a bloody Keyblade definitely looks worse than a shiny, just-polished one. Twirling it between his fingers, he set off for the Castle kitchen, opting to walk instead of portal. Portalling was something that was definitely not his forte. Besides, the Kitchen was what...only a floor down, and about four hallways away.

It occured then to him, as he was walking with the Keychain in his hand...King Mickey _did_ ask him to seal the remaining Keyholes, right?

_No!_ Antiform protested vehemently.

"Aw, c'mon," he chided himself. "...Have a heart. Grant a dying man his final--"

"Wielder!" Xemnas' voice called after him.

Sora looked over his shoulder, at a very white-faced Xemnas. Whoo. He had finally figured out _why_ he was happy, then. "Yeppers, Superior?"

"--h-have you paid a..._visit_ to King Mickey lately?"

_I sure did._

Laughing, he tossed the reverse Disney Keychain into the air, and commanded it to transform his Keyblade. At the height of his toss the three-circle gold Keychain flashed momentarily, becoming only a white glow. The white glow then lengthened, and faded (with a multitude of pretty white shiny sparkles) into a three-foot Key. He then caught it by its silver handle, and winced--as expected, it still bore the blood from the duel the night before.

A mixture of his, and King Mickey's blood.

As they said, no pain, no gain. Well, Sora might have twisted it a little, but the thought's still there, right?

"Y'know, royal blood tastes just the same as ordinary blood..." He smiled, and walked off, ignoring Xemnas' spluttering behind him. Hmm. The kitchen awaited the arrival of cleaning extraordinaire, Sir Sora Hikari.

---------------------

Rinoa was a perfectionist. That, she admitted to herself. For example, although she had been exiled for being a sorceress for almost ten years, she had been faithfully keeping her abilities honed--just in case something happened.

And that was also why she had been attacking this margarita glass for something like thirty minutes straight now; hardwater stains was something she could easily remove, but she preferred taking care of it the mortal way. It seemed theraputic. Now that she had no Knight, it was much more easier to keep focused this way. (1)

"...so, Rin!" the brunette in front of her clapped her hands enthusiastically, emerald eyes sparkling. "They're coming tomorrow! I'm so excited!"

Beside her, Hayner, a blonde, and Olette's boyfriend, rolled his eyes. "Yay," he said halfheartedly, and the girl punched him lightly on the arm.

"How about you, Pence?" Rinoa asked, eyelid twitching--stupid stain. "You got your camera ready?"

"I _always_ have my camera ready," the rather chubby photographer of their group said confidently. "When that girl Naminé comes---ooh, I'll prove that she was at the Old Mansion, yeah."

Rinoa paused, and raised an eyebrow. She knew for a fact that the blonde Nobody ('cause she knows that) once worked in the Old Mansion, to rechain the Keyblade Master's memories, but that was almost two years ago. What was the memory-chainer doing there right now? She smoothed her face into a look of mild curiousity. "What?"

"You know the Old Mansion's locked, right? Well, for some reason, we saw this blonde, Naminé, standing at the windows. We thought it was the Seventh Wonder of Twillight Town--and we have proof," Pence explained, handing her a three by five photograph.

She fingered the picture. Sure enough, the cerulean-eyed Nobody was standing at the huge second-story window of the Old Mansion, staring blankly outside. Once again, she made her tone curious. "...how did she get in...?"

Hayner nodded. "That's the first thing we're going to ask her once Destiny Academy gets here for the Twilight Festival tomorrow."

"Well, keep me upda--"

_"We interrupt this program for breaking news--"_

She blinked; had the Bar's radio just...?

_"Heartless have attacked the world of Destiny Islands today..."_

The whole Bar had fallen silent at this proclamation (which was saying something, sine the Bar was almost filled to capacity), and the three teenagers sitting at the front bar went rigid, hands frozen on their ginger ales. Rinoa flounced to the radio, and turned up the volume.

_"...the disputed source of the Neoshadow attack had been identified as Destiny Academy. Casualties have not yet been verified, but at least twenty students have been taken. We have live feedback from the Academy--Raine, come in."_

She watched impassively as her customer's faces turned from stunned to horrified to pale and frightened. She cast a magnifying spell silently, so that the radio blared outside 7th Heaven Bar and Restaurant as well. As expected, the people outside in Market Square froze, listening.

_"I-I read you, Ellone. W-We're here live from the Academy--"_

She understood their shock--Destiny Islands was well-known for being one of the safest Worlds out there, since the Island Administration had accepted King Mickey's personal offer of protection. It actually had to, since Destiny Islands was home to two Keyblade Wielders and a Princess of Heart--Heartless would doubtlessly storm the Islands if they got the chance. However, the stationed Paladins and Defenders always made sure the Islands were safe.

If Heartless got in; it meant one of the safest places in their universe was no stronghold. In turn, this would spread panic; Heartless was gaining strength.

"_The destruction here is unbelievable. The quad's broken into concrete rubble, and students are lying sprawled around. Professors and Healers are trying their best to help the students--"_

Rinoa sighed inaudibly; she knew at once who had orchestrated the attack. Only one person would dare to strike at the heart of one of Disney's most heavily guarded Worlds...someone who had something personal against Destiny Islands.

A very mad _fallen_ Keyblade Master.

'cause King Mickey had done something very stupid. Yep. Even if he was the King. King Mickey...he reminded her of Ansem. And Ansem the Wise didn't have a very good standing with her, either. Sometimes she thought the two shared more than an image of authority; they seemed to think in the same way. Both loved to sacrifice a single person for a major end. She gritted her teeth, forcing her anger down--too much emotion was bad for a sorceress, since they tend to go berserk and destroy known reality.

She had met with the King the night after Sora had been reborn as half-Heartless, half-Nobody. Of course, she knew that--a Neoshadow had told her. Since her powers were of the darkness, naturally, the Heartless took to her like a sister; they knew better than to try and take her heart. His _Majesty_ had been stunned, to say the very least, to see her in her full sorceress regalia, with her broad white wings and amber irises and whatnot (she only wanted to intimidate him--she didn't actually need to show her wings).

Rinoa had talked in-depth about the realm of darkness' standing--it _was_ her jurisdiction, after all, since she had no Knight to speak of, because Ansem the Wise had _exiled_ her from Radiant Garden, because---agh, she's getting a headache. King Mickey had argued back--him sending Sora on an impossible task was for the realm of light's safety.

King Mickey had finally agreed to find a way to reverse the disastrous Knighting, and Rinoa had promised him that she'll be watching. She knew that she wasn't even supposed to interfere with mortal issues and problems, but what the heck--here was a kid who had saved the world twice over, and had no idea that being the Key to Kingdom Hearts was an all-consuming job. Poor thing. He was never supposed to lead a happy life, because Heartless were waiting for him around every corner.

_"--the Heartless had just been annihilated by an unknown force thirty minutes ago. Miss..." _

The Bar was still deathly quiet, save for the sound of erratic breathing, at this point. She strained to hear outside--it was the same. You could drop a pin and hear it echo.

_"Yuna."_

_"Can you describe what happened here?"_

_"Well, there was a commotion right before the Heartless appeared...Professor Fujiwara and Kairi were demonstrating something and--"_

Rinoa blinked. _Kairi..._the name of Sora's sweetheart(what? She knows Sora 'cause she's a sorceress. _But_ she knows Sora loves Kairi because she's _such_ a sappy girl), and the seventh, and most powerful (she might even be equal to Rinoa's own powers) Princess of Heart. It was also, if she was not mistaken, the name of Radiant Garden's legitimate princess--well, it _had_ been years since she last saw the princess, so there's a chance that she could be wrong.

Besides, who trusts sorceresses, anyway?

"_All of a sudden all these Neoshadows burst up of the ground...we were fighting for a bit and we were almost losing and then,"_ Yuna's voice panted ,"_all of a sudden this light streams out from the quad and all the Heartless simply vanished!"_

_"...this Kairi...Kairi Dalmasca-Leonhart?"_

_"Uhm, Kairi Dalmasca, yes."_

She smiled slightly. "...his little sister."(2)

_"Of course! A Princess of Heart! And then--"_

_"BREAKING NEWS Good heavens, viewers," _the radio crackled out, after giving an abnormally loud static squeak,_"We have just confirmed that King Mickey Overseer of the Worlds has just been attacked viciously--His Majesty has already been placed under the care of Disney's Healers. We have no word if he is still alive--" _

and, as expected, Twilight Town burst into chaos.

She slapped a hand to her forehead exasperatedly. Gah. She _had_ told King Mickey to up his security. Rinoa looked around--some people were randomly screaming, and the three teens had vanished into the crowd. Pandemonium broke out as people struggled to calm themselves down.

She took the chance, and disappeared in a flurry of sorceress feathers. Rinoa had a feeling that only a Level Eight white mage ('cause she's level nine of both white and black magic) can save him now. He could still be saved if she hurried.

_If_ she hurried.

She wondered if she should take her own sweet time.

-------------------------

"...I know, yep. Trade seats," Kairi said knowingly, even before Elazul opened his mouth. He smiled sheepishly, and nodded.

"Thanks," he beamed gratefully. "I'll carry your bags there."

"You'd better," she grinned, before standing up and searching for Elazul's platinum blonde girlfriend, Pearl. Oooh, she hoped she got a good seatmate, someone she knew, preferably, so that she could do something else than sleep all the way through the 3-hour flight to Twilight Town. And someone preferably who didn't hate Riku for his guts. Uhm. That would be fine. "Pearl! Where the heck--"

"Dalmasca," Professor Zexion said sharply, chancing to walk by her. "You have feet. Use them."

"...yes, sir," she said under her breath, watching as the blue-haired Physics professor walk down the Gummi Ship aisle. She wondered whether professor Zexion had any other color in his wardrobe other than black--even though they wore civilian clothes today, he and his fellow professor, the blonde Healing Arts prof Larxene, had worn their usual black.

Hm. Maybe they were sympathizing with Disney?

Worlds protected by Disney Castle had started a vigil for the health of King Mickey, who had been mauled last night. Media were quick to point out the connection between the Heartless attack in Destiny Academy, and the attack on the King. Reporters had had a field day on learning her and Riku were more than friends already--a Princess of Heart and a Keyblade Master, and had gushed all over them...

However, the question on everyone's lips were...where was the _other_ Keyblade Master?

Where was Sora Hikari?

..._Eh, you're not connected to him, anyway._

There was that voice once more--and Kairi had taken to it gratefully. It kept her sane, since every so often she'd wake up in the middle of the night, heart pounding, wondering _where the hell Sora was_. Then she'd feel guilty, and try to forget it.

_I told you, forget it, Kaikai._

"..."

Today was the Twilight Town trip, and they were set off for their sister school, Twilight Academy. Students of Year II and Year III could go, provided that they presented a letter of permission from their parents.

Her adoptive father, and her apprehensive grandmother, had reluctantly given her permission--granted that Riku would protect her at all times...which was actually what they were planning to do. The aquamarine-eyed Wielder had gladly agreed.

Well...Riku had lived alone for so long, he had no idea where to ask permission from. His problem was solved when he found out that the Academy would not allow him _not_ to go, since he was skilled with a Keyblade and everything.

Speaking of Riku...where _was_ he? He was seated way in the front, while she was seated around the middle of the Gummi Ship. Sighing, she plopped down back into the plush seat, and turned to Elazul. "Eh, why don't _you_ find your girlfriend?"

"'kay," the raven-haired Jumi replied, picking up his grey bag, standing up himself and walking to the front; Pearl was bound to be in there, with a last name of Antonoia.

Kairi looked around, taking the feel of the Gummi Ship in. She had been told once that commercial Gummi Ships were very different from the weapon-ones. Those were much, much smaller--this Gummi Ship had a seating capacity of about three hundred people. Every aisle had three plush blue fabric-covered, armrested seats, and the rectangular reinforced ('cause the atmosphere outside a world, even with the established routes, is not very pleasant to be in) glass windows at the end of each aisle were very large. The floors were carpeted also in blue, but there were no overhead storage--those were for the longhaul flights.

Sighing, she sank back deeper into the chair, hoping to the high heavens she got a decent seatmate.

"...argh, what _did_ you pack in this thing?"

"More things."

"Girls..."

Kairi twisted around and knelt in her seat, peeking over it. A frustrated Roxas was trying to place a brown leather suitcase properly at the foot of the seats, while a bemused Naminé was trying her best to help. Key word there being _tried_. She ended up adding to Roxas' frustration. "...hey guys."

"Hey Kairi."

"Hi Other."

Was it just her, or way her Nobody's greeting a bit..._strained_? Sapphire blue eyes met blue-violet ones, and Naminé quickly looked away. Hm. It was just Kairi's imagination.

She smiled broadly, and turned her attention to Roxas, ignoring the pounding of her heart at the sight of cerulean blue eyes so similar to Sora's. "Nice seating, huh, Roxas?"

She watched with unsupressed glee as his ears slowly turned red. "...yep. Just don't go all PDA on us."

"It's not PDA! And no, Riku's not my seatmate."

The blonde boy had finally decided to just let the suitcase be, and he leant tiredly on his chair, while Naminé had already scooted past him and sat in the seat nearest the window. "He's not?" Roxas asked curiously. "Didn't you swap or something?"

Kairi shook her head. "We're going to spend the day together, in any case. And absence makes the heart grow fonder, anyway."

She didn't miss the look that said 'THEN THAT MEANS YOU LOVE SORA TO DEATH, 'CAUSE HE'S BEEN MIA FOR GOD KNOWS HOW LONG' between the two, but she brushed it off silently. "...what about you two? Am I supposed to expect PDA from you two?"

Naminé's mouth twitched. "Shut it, Kai."

"Touchy, touchy," she teased, leaning her chin on her palm as she giggled. "Proves that you're guilty."

"Am not."

"...you are."

The blonde girl blushed furiously, and refused to meet her gaze, opting to stare out of the window instead. "Am _not_."

"Yes, you are."

"Hey, sit properly," a voice behind her reprimanded, and she smiled, looking over her shoulder. A smirking Riku met her gaze.

"You don't tell me what I do, Sir Riku," she said airily, turning back to face the two blondes. "This is _my_ chair--go back to the front."

"Nope," she raised an eyebrow as she felt Riku snake his arm around her shoulders. "It is my chair. Pearl's my seatmate."

"...and I thought I could get away from you."

Riku laughed, and kissed her cheek. "Now you know you can't, Kairi."

Roxas spluttered. "Ah, it burrrns!" he said sarcastically, shielding his eyes from their display of affection.

-------------------------

"Out of my way," Rinoa said calmly, even putting her hands on her hips and raising an eyebrow. "I have to see King Mickey."

The hulking, breastplated guards looked down on her, and laughed, pounding their spears on the carpeted floor in front of the massive mahogany doors of the Royal Bedchambers. "Missy, scrawny runts like you ain't allowed inside."

Her eyelid twitched--Mickey needed his dose of industrial-strength Curagas, and only she was strong enough to administer them hourly without fainting from the stress. In fact, she hardly broke a sweat.

Pssh, and these were the guys who attacked her on sight the instant she coalesced into Disney Castle. Of course, she had her wings out then, so it was pretty understandable the guards didn't recongnize her. But 'scrawny runt'...? She deemed it insulting. And it was common sense _not_ to insult a sorceress.

"Don't you recognize me?" she asked evenly, peering up into their visors. "I'm Sorceress Rinoa."

They laughed even harder.

Gritting her teeth, she spread her left hand towards the sky, and the black clouds suddenly gathered. Thunder resounded, and lightning flashed unmercilessly. She was one finger snap from making it storm like there was tomorrow.

The guards stared at her in fear, laughter dying away almost instantly.

"...need even more persuasion?" Rinoa said in a deathly quiet voice. To her surprise, both the guards twirled their lances into a defensive position, crossed across the massive mahogany doors.

"Friend or foe?" one of them asked in a shaky voice. She slapped her forehead frustratedly, and as a result, it began to rain heavily. _Oh cripes, _she thought. She focused, drew on deeply on her powers, and let the excess energy take form as massive angelic wings sprouting from behind her back. She didn't let it disappear, as opposed to what she usually did. People respected her more whenever she had her wings out--if she was not mistaken, her name was spoken with fear here in Disney Castle.

"I am a friend," she said firmly, "And if you don't let me in now, your King will die."

The lances straightened hurriedly, and Rinoa pushed the doors open, wondering if she should've teleported straight inside. But she needed Disney Castle's trust, and for that, she needed to respect the rules of the household.

She went straight to the majestic four-poster bed in the middle of the cavernous room, and came to a stop beside an asleep Queen Minnie. Rinoa smiled warmly, and cloaked the slumbering mouse with a blanket. The Queen had faithfully kept vigil over her unconscious husband, refusing to even sleep. Rinoa herself had not slept in the last two days, but she wasn't to feel fatigue because of sleep deprivation for another two weeks. Being a sorceress had its perks.

_"Curaga._" She murmured, placing a hand above the King, tucked in white antiseptic blankets up to his pale chin, which mercifully hid the bandages and stitches that he had to be supplied with. White light surrounded him momentarily, and faded away. King Mickey's breathing eased considerably.

"Sorceress Rinoa," a voice said timidly, and she didn't need to turn around to know it was one of the Palace Healers.

"Yes?" she said blankly, feeling the King's forehead. As expected, it was cold as ice. Oooh, Sora was one hell of a hard hitter--he _did_ leave the King only a hair from death. She often wondered if Sora left the King alive on purpose. Which reminded her; none of the residents of the known universe knew that it was Sora who attacked the King, save for Organization XIII.

"...thank you, for helping us, and the King."

"What can I do? I'm just a concerned citizen, aren't I?" she said cheerily, adjusting Queen Minnie's blankets gently.

"We are eternally grateful."

_You sure are_. "You're welcome."

"...so that's why we," the Healer cleared his throat uneasily," have informed the Kingdom of the good samaritan who saved the King by finding and giving him the Healing spells he desperately needed."

She froze, and her wings flared involuntarily. Rinoa felt her irises turn amber. "...you what?"

"The Kingdom knows your goodness."

Rinoa spun around, and the Healer recoiled. "...you were not supposed to do that."

She watched impassively as the Healer gave her face one frightened look, and sprinted away as fast as he could. She made a mental note to remember her expression--it sure was effective.

She sighed, and set about the daunting task of making sure this information did not reach outside ears.

---------------------

_"This is Professor Larxene, people. Sit down and put on your seatbelts, please, until the Gummi Ship takes off. Secure all weapons and items properly. Trading seats may be done once more when we are in flight. People who have motion sickness--say something before you hurl. The trip is going to last approximately two hours and fifty-two minutes. Be safe, and let's take off."_

Riku almost had to wrench Kairi from the chair, and make her sit down properly. He resisted the urge to roll his eyes; Kairi was sixteen years old, and she acted so much like a kid sometimes.

Which painfully reminded him of somebody else. A certain sky-blue eyed somebody.

Not matter what he told himself, he knew what he was doing was just wrong...but it hurt him so much to see Kairi sad. The redhead looked perfectly happy whenever he was with her; and to him, it was all that mattered.

"Do I _have_ to put on the seatbelt for you, Kai?"

"Uhm, no," the redhead stammered, fumbling with her seatbelt buckle.

_"This is Captain Barrett, and I shall be yer pilot for this trip. Buckle up, kiddies."_

"...did you know I've never flown in a Gummi Ship before?" Kairi asked, teeth bared, face white.

Riku shook his head. "Don't worry, I think most of the people here haven't, either. Even I've only ridden on a Gummi Ship once."

Well, if you considered that thing he and Sora rode on when they were battling with Xemnas. Eh? Why did everything have to remind him of Sora? He was getting paranoid...or maybe his conscience was acting up.

The ship lurched, and he was forced to sit back in his seat. Kairi's fingers gripped his hand tightly as they took off; the view from the window turned from the navy blue early morning sky of Destiny Islands to orange atmosphere, to green mist, and finally, into the black void of space.

"Mhmm, that was an interesting experience," she said shakily, staring out of the window.

Riku leant back into his seat, yawning, watching as various scattered Gummi blocks floated across their windows lazily. He knew for a fact that those were left there by the Heartless ships Sora had destroyed long ago--what was it, three years?

How long since he had seen his best friend?

Were they even still considered friends now...?

Argh. Why did _everything_ have to remind him of the brunette Keyblade Master?

------------------------

"_Achoo!"_

Sora blinked rapidy, eyes watering. He had just sneezed twice in a row; someone _was_ thinking of him right now. Hm. It could be Xemnas, wondering when he'll go berserk next. Or it could be King Mickey, wondering _how_ Sora managed to defeat him. Or it could just be Axel, wondering how he'd be able to get out of 'Sora duty'.

Pssh. Xemnas had secretly (well now it wasn't exactly a secret) assigned Organization XIII members to guard his every move whenever Roxas was not within the Castle boundaries. Now, it was Axel's turn, and the fiery redhead made no secret of it. Sora wondered why Axel hadn't gone on that field trip to Twilight Town Roxas kept going on about--that meant alone time for Zexion and Larxene.

"You know, I can take care of myself," he said, directing the statement behind him, where he knew Axel was walking casually.

He heard number Eight snort derisively. "Sorry to be blunt, but I'm not babysitting you--I'm making sure you don't go berserk on us."

The words struck him like a well-placed Thundaga. Had he really gone that far? "...I didn't mean to, really."

"You're only saying that because Roxas has just gone. Pretty soon you'll go all violent."

Sora stopped short, contemplating Axel's words. He felt calmer this morning...and it was true. It was because Roxas had just left a few hours ago. Give or take a day, Antiform would speak again. It was only in moments like this that Sora was alone with his thoughts--he had realized earlier this morning that he had left his journal somewhere in the Academy...gah. No matter; the lock automatically resealed itself whenever it was out of a Keyblade Master's hands.

Which led to a horrifying, and heartening thought: what if _Riku_ was the one who found it?

Shaking his head, he looked back over his shoulder at Axel, who stared back at him with blazing emerald eyes. "...I guess everyone thinks that of me, now."

"You _did_ attack the King," he said pointedly.

He had a point there...but still. Sora turned around to face him, and the pyro flinched. He always made Organization recoil, or flinch, for one reason or another. "You don't understand how I feel, Axel," he shot back in a hoarse voice,"If you were in my place, you'd do the same."

He hesitated visibly, probably mulling the things over his head.

Sora's life had been _ruined_ by King Mickey. Heck, he had no life to speak of now--he was floating between Heartless and Nobody. Of course he'd want to return the favor. Besides, he needed his own Keyblade.

Axel quickly changed the subject. Well, not really. "Sora, you left King Mickey alive, right?"

He asked it so casually it could've been a question about the weather. Sora nodded, and stared resolutely at his yellow sneakers. "I had to. I couldn't get his Keyblade if he died."

It was a safeguard, the Keyblade's connection to its Master. No Keyblade can be forcefully taken from its Master; it had to be given willingly. Of course, it had taken a lot of coaxing on Sora's part to make King Mickey give him the Reverse Keyblade. Even dangling his Majesty from death's edge didn't work. In the end, Sora had to trick him into doing so. It was a pain in the neck to get, really.

"So you're really set on having his Keyblade, eh?"

"Yep," Sora nodded. "Never got the feel of the Dark Keyblade, anyway."

He never would--the Dark Keyblade may be very powerful, able to rip away hearts, but it was downright sickening to wield the very same Keyblade that killed him. Sora could still smell his own blood on the ebony-black metal.

He wondered how Riku and Kairi would feel if they found out what had happened to him; but there was no way in hell that'd happen, for the King had forbidden Organization XIII to reveal what had befallen Sora.

...maybe he should've killed the King after getting the Reverse Keyblade. That would be a great stress-reliever. He turned to Axel once again, and found the pyromaniac lost in his own thoughts.

"I've never seen you space out like that," he said loudly, and Axel blinked rapidly, grinning.

"I was just thinking," he grinned even more broadly, walking up to him.

They set off for Fragment Crossing together--the Nobodies down in the black market were celebrating, and Sora was invited as the guest of honor.

-----------------------

_Flash_.

_"People, this is Prof Larxene again--we'll be landing in Twilight Terminal in ten minutes. Wake up, and make sure you leave nothing that you're not supposed to."_

Kairi blinked sleepily, and shifted position slightly, snuggling closer to Riku. The platinum-haired boy opened one aquamarine eye, and smiled. "Kai, wake up already."

"I don't want to..." she moaned, clutching his arm tighter.

"Well, you need to," he said warningly," or do I have to make you wake up?"

She remained silent, still perfectly groggy. Ugh. She didn't really hated mornings; she only hated waking up in really _early_ mornings. Her eyes snapped open when she felt something poke her side--unfair! Riku knew she was ticklish! "No fair!"

"...wake uuup," Riku said in a singsong voice, tickling her mercilessly.

"Ah! Ah! Okay! I'm up! Gah, stop!" Kairi could barely talk for laughing--ooh, she'll get back at him for this. She _always_ got back at Sora whenever _he_ tickled her; pssh, she had always gotten back, she always did...

Her breath hitched. Oh, why was she thinking of him _now_, of all times?

Surprisingly, that voice was gone...it always did, whenever her Nobody was close to her. She didn't know if it was good or not. All she knew was that right now, she was worrying for Sora, and that was enough.

"Kairi, you okay...?"

Blinking, she nodded enthusiastically, opting to stare out the window instead.

_"Prof Kisaragi and Alcaia, we land in five minutes. Please proceed to the Ship bridge now. Barret out."_

Kairi watched as the two black-clad professors brushed by their row and proceeded to the front. Professor Larxene was something of a cult figure in the Academy; it wasn't everyday that they had both a skilled physical warrior and Level Seven mage as a Healing Arts Professor. Not to mention that she was breathtakingly beautiful.

It made her feel slightly jealous. No matter. She knew Riku only had eyes for her, and she only had eyes for---

_Why couldn't she just say it?_ What was happening to her? What the _heck_ was she thinking, being together with Riku like this?

_Kairi, why...?_

"...it's even more than what Kairi and Riku would pull off!" a very vehement exclamation from the seat behind them jolted her out of her thoughts. Curious, she knelt on her seat and peered at the two blondes, who were examing what suspiciously looked like a photograph.

"What won't we pull off?" she asked loudly. They looked like deer caught in headlights. Naminé coughed loudly, and lightly smacked the back of Roxas' head.

"Nothing, nothing."

Kairi raised an eyebrow bemusedly. "Huh?"

"_Kairi, sit down."_

She giggled a bit; that was a very annoyed Riku talking. "Okay, okay already." She reluctantly sat back down, pouting. She was about to catch Roxas and Naminé in the act, and Sir Grumpy has to ruin it.

Aquamarine eyes bored into the side of her head as she refastened her seatbelt. It was unnerving, Riku's gaze; it always made the hairs at the back of her neck prickle, but in a good and tingly way. Wooh. Her fingers fumbled, and Riku calmly fastened her seatbelt for her, making her cheeks blush scarlet. "T-thanks."

"No problem, Princess," he replied, putting an arm around her shoulders. She leaned on him and smiled as the World of Twilight Town came into view.

She had never been here, yet she knew that it was a world stuck in eternal twilight (hence the name Twilight Town--stupid, stupid Kairi), and it was having its festival today. She hoped the dorms they would be staying in would be good.

She wondered if this trip was going to be any good. Period.

And in some deep recess of her mind, she secretly wished Sora was sealing _this_ World's Keyhole.

------------------------

"_Achoo!"_

Sora sneezed again, and he had to hold his cup steady in order not to spill too much blood on the ground of Fragment Crossing.

"Sir Sora?" a passing Gambler asked--Marty was his name, yeah. He was the Nobody who sold him his first pack of blood. "Are you all right? You've been sneezing a lot of times since you got here."

"Yep, I'm fine," he nodded slightly. "Nice party, by the way."

Marty beamed. "Thanks!"

Nobodies sure knew how to celebrate--Fragment Crossing was packed full of assorted Nobodies, and Sora had even spotted Demyx somewhere there once. Hm. Maybe he should go find number Nine while he was still sober--Demyx drunk was something he did not want to see. He had heard enough terrible stories already.

UHh...he could chalk up his annoying repeated sneezing to the fact that someone was thinking about him, but what the heck. Something probably got stuck in his nose or something. Eh.

Whistling, he spun around on his heels and went to find Demyx, the Nobody crowd parting for him as he went through, and a cheer going up where he had passed.

These guys really had something against Disney, yeah.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(1) Don't worry, this has no spoilers. For those who haven't played FFVIII (where Squall **Leon**hart and **Rinoa** Heartilly come from), a Sorceress needs a Knight to help her control her sorceress powers. Her powers are naturally attuned to the dark, so the Knight's support balances it out. Kind of Roxas' control over Sora's antiform.

(2) I'll use this. Uhm. If I do decide on making a sequel. If.

Sneezing is considered to be a sign that someone's thinking of you. Also applies to accidentally biting your tongue. Yeah.

I have some art for this; it's in my deviantart account. See my profile for the link, yeppers. Tell me if you like it.

...sorry to tell you guys, but the ending's on the horizon. It shall be quick and painless, ne?

Review, flame if you want. I'll get back to ya.

Special shoutout to **skilled-like-a-ninja**, numinanaminé **_luvs_** you. Thank you very much, yeah. -nods-


	23. Take Note

**A/N: **Sorry for waiting so long. But I've got a legitimate excuse, yeah. Tons of schoolwork. Don't worry, your suffering won't take long--The ending of this fanfic is scheduled before Halloween. Nice timing, ne? Maybe shatter someone else's heart this Halloween?

...and yeah, if you're an angst fan like me, you should check out **Boys Will Be**by **Lizzy Rebel**. It's now officially one of my most favorite stories ever. Like yeah. Wow. I'm still not over it. O.O

**Disclaimer: **Nuh-uh. I don't own Sora & co.

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------------------------

**XXIII: **T**_a_**ke **_No_**t**_e_**

**--------------------**

**-**

"...and yeah, here's the room you're assigned to, yep."

Riku didn't know whether to groan or to grin; his roommates (in no particular order) were a engrossed-in-unpacking Roxas, a hyperactive, bored-to-death Tidus, and a snoring Wakka. Why the heck did the professors feel the need to drive him crazy? "Uhm. Thanks, Hayner."

The blonde brown-eyed teen smirked, bobbing his head once. "Have fun. General assembly's at ten."

"I'll try to--" he stared after the punky kid as Hayner strode down the corridor and out of sight. Sighing, he went inside the (their) room and shut the door behind him.

Twilight Academy had prepared for their arrival, it seemed, in a rather flustered way. People have been downright overjoyed on learning a Keyblade Master had just arrived in their world--they seemed to think Riku can protect them from darkness if need be. Sadly, they had no idea that the longer he and Kairi stayed here, the more Heartless and Nobodies would come after them. And yes, it was advisable to keep his ability to control darkness under wraps. Pssh.

King Mickey getting attacked the night before had forced almost all the Worlds to reevaluate their security systems, and Twilight Town was no exception. Pale-faced Twilight-born Paladins stood guard at the Town perimeter, slaying Heartless as they struggled to get in. Posters on what to do in case of a Nobody/Heartless raid had been posted everywhere. No less than thirty-two Twilight Academy students have challenged him to a duel, and it wasn't even ten o' clock yet.

Gah. Riku had a feeling he'd be demonstrating battle strategy the whole afternoon.

...he had a sneaking suspicion it wasn't _really_ a field trip. It turned into something more like a training program.

"Upperclassman!" Tidus half-yelled, chucking a pillow at him, which Riku easily ducked and threw back at the blonde.

"So what...?" he asked boredly, tossing his backpack into the only non-occupied bed in the room. Riku stared around the rather spacious dormitory room; whitewashed walls stood unadorned, and four beds with identical russet orange bedspreads, each stamped with the Twilight Academy seal, stood in a row against the walls. Worn brown carpet cushioned his feet, and white-framed glass windows were thrown open in hopes of tempting Twilight Town's famous cooling breeze.

The dormitory had temporarily been vacated partly to make room for them--thus, the girls were only situated somewhere down the hall. Which kind of made it easier for him to lug Kairi's luggage to her room.

It was made a rule that people(a) may not stay in another room alone with a person of the opposite sex after ten in the evening, (b) bedcheck hours were at ten, and people had to be in their rooms at ten, and (c) no 'funny' things (as professor Zexion had termed while blushing furiously).

"I thought all upperclassmen were stuck-up," Tidus said offhandedly, cerulean blue eyes eyeing him curiously.

Riku collapsed on his bed, and tore off his sneakers (and resisted the urge to throw them into Roxas' face, who had just commented loudly on the smell). "I am _not_ stuck-up. No. Way. Do I look stuck up to you? Ti_dus_, you're my team captain in blitzball--of all the people you should know."

The blonde blinked. "I dunno...maybe you're different on the field than in person."

Riku threw his other pillow at Tidus.

Wakka snorted, and turned over.

"Has he gotten over losing Lulu yet?" Riku asked cautiously. He had heard that the Black Mage was one of those taken by the Heartless in the Destiny Island outbreak.

Tidus blinked at him. "...eh? It was Paine who got hurt, her sister. Not Lulu. D'you really think he'd be sleepin' like a baby if Lulu turned Heartless?"

"Uh...no." He'd gotten far too used to Sora being bipolar, he figured.

_Sora...?_

He grunted, and flopped onto his stomach, staring at the headboard of his bed absently. The issue of his best friend was popping up in his head recently, and the incredible feeling of guilt everytime he was with Kairi was testament to that.

But why now?

Yawning, he sat up and started rummaging through his bag for his stock of Hi-Potions, hoping that they didn't break from getting hauled around.

"...argh," Roxas suddenly sniffed loudly, pawing through his bag's contents frustatedly, tossing his shortswords to the carpeted floor.

"What?" Tidus asked Roxas, tossing back Riku's pillows to him.

"Nothing," the spiky-haired blonde growled, before sneezing vehemently.

Riku stared at him bemusedly. Roxas had finally given up on unpacking and tossed his own bag at the foot of his bed, which was the one nearest the open window. He then climbed--no, crawled--into his own bedsheets, kicked off his sneakers, and buried his head under the pillow. Which did nothing to muffle his sneeze a few seconds later.

"Dude," Tidus said. "Looks like you're down with the chills or something."

"No, I'm fine," Roxas' voice said hoarsely, muffled by the cloth of the bed.

Riku smirked, and tossed a vial of Hi-Potion in the blonde's direction, bouncing off his chest. Judging from the paleness of Roxas' visible arms, the Nobody was sick with a very bad cold. Probably because he had given his overjacket to Naminé in the Gummi Ship earlier--Gummi Ships were notorious for their excessive airconditioning. "Drink up, it'll help."

"I'm fine, Riku," he groaned, picking up the vial and setting it beside his bed. "I just need some rest, that's all."

"Don't be stupid," he shot back. "Drink the Potion and get to sleep."

"No," Roxas muttered once more, hand dangling over one side of his bed and shuffling blindly in his bag. He drew out a small ebony-black looseleaf notebook and slid it under his pillow tiredly.

Riku eyed the notebook with interest. "Aww, Roxas? You keep a diary?"

"Probably filled with doodles of Naminé's name," Tidus added, stuffing his fist in his mouth to keep from laughing too loud, and waking Wakka up.

The blonde bedheaded boy sighed resignedly. "Shut up, you two. It's my Physics notebook--maybe if I sleep on it, the notes'll pass into my brain..."

"Well that's a good excuse," Riku yawned once more, bouncing slightly as he collapsed back into his pillow.

--------------------

"What is _up_ with people forgetting today?" Pence muttered, twisting the lens cap of his black camera open. "First Roxas, and then you, Kairi."

The redhead shifted uneasily at the edge of her bed, but she was slightly comforted by the sight of a very flustered Naminé staring at her feet.

"Might have had something to do with darkness," Kairi reasoned loudly, wondering what they meant by Roxas and forgetting too. "You know. _That_."

Olette quirked a knowing smile, and elbowed Pence in the ribs.

Well, Kairi couldn't exactly jerk a thumb in her Nobody's direction and say 'Oh yeah, she kind of chained this memory down', Twilight Town students might hunt Naminé if they learned she _was_ a Nobody.

"Well, we gotta go, our professors are waiting," the brunette, emerald-eyed girl said dejectedly. "Maybe you and Riku could get ice cream with us later?"

"Why not?"

_"Olette Winhill and Pence Nakamura, report to the dorm counter please._"

Olette made a face and dragged her photographer friend out of sight.

Naminé whimpered and twiddled her thumbs.

She turned to the flaxen-haired girl and scowled. "Care to explain?"

"Erm, Roxas...I actually...cripes, it's a long story."

"...one that I presume you've already told me but chained the memory down?"

"Roxas lived here in Twilight Town when he was on the run from Organization XIII," Naminé said airily, quickly changing the subject. "Once he was remerged, well, I had to chain down the memories of everyone here. But I just broke the chains this morning, 'cause--"

Kairi stared at her disbelievingly. "You can actually _stand_ doing that? That's like breaking Roxas' heart!"

"I don't feel remorse, Kairi," she frowned. "And I had to."

"Like you really had to chain down my own memo--"

"Hey! Kai, Nam! We're back!" another brunette almost screamed from the doorway, jade green eyes sparkling with what presumably was a sugar overdose, and toting no less than five bags.

"Selphie, Yuna," she greeted back, smiling bemusedly at the way Yuna rolled her bi-colored eyes. Probably Selphie had dragged her all over Twilight Academy, seeing the sights. She shot her Nobody a glance, and Naminé stared stoically back.

Selphie tossed her purchases onto her bed, and put her hands on her hips excitedly. "So! You guys ready for the assembly?" And without waiting for an answer, she crossed the room in a few strides and pulled both Kairi and Naminé to their feet.

"Do we have a choice?" Kairi asked weakly, fearing that her circulation might be cut off by Selphie's deathgrip on her wrist.

Behind them, Yuna giggled derisively. "As always, no."

Naminé managed a weak smile. Probably still shaken up by Kairi's interrogation. "Erh, I really don't have any choice. I pretty much got everything from Kairi, anyway."

"...what?" Selphie asked.

"Nothing," the blonde said, smiling a very personal smile.

Kairi did get what she was trying to say. Breaking hearts was something Naminé got from her, her Other. No matter how she tried to wave it aside, Naminé's words stung her deeply.

Biting her lip, she followed Selphie out of their room.

-------------------

Sora woke up feeling very peckish.

Apparently, copious amounts of alcohol-spiked blood and a thirty-minute nap did no good for him and his mind. It left him feeling more guilty (if he _did_ feel guilty) than ever about attacking Organization XIII members. Mercifully, Antiform had still not shown itself--he had probably been more than satisfied with leaving King Mickey near death.

He cringed, but quickly corrected himself. Uh. He shouldn't be feeling guilty for attacking the King who killed him, in an indirect way. In fact, he should be feeling disappointed--why didn't he just kill the stupid mouse...?

Key word there being _should_.

Groaning, he sat up and scratched his head, forgetting to use his right hand.

"Well _that_ woke me up," he growled, feeling ribbons of blood trace their path down his scalp where his claws had raked through. Sora strode down the hall and into the nearest bathroom, intending to clean up for what seemed like the millionth time.

Internally he wondered how Roxas was faring.

And with that, how Naminé and Riku and Kai--

"Shut up, Sora," he chided himself.

--------------------

"...well? Don't hold back!" Kairi yelled, and Riku felt himself blush as he turned around to face another Twilight Academy student. Which was a girl. Uhm.

Now, don't take Riku as a sap. He just doesn't like attacking girls, that's all.

"Hey, I'm Lenne," she smiled, tossing her long mahogany hair over one tanned shoulder. Beaded braids clinked and shone in the twilight, and her periwinkle half-skirt rippled in the breeze. She stood easily, with no sign of a weapon anywhere. "Lenne Remscar. Nice to be battling with you, Sir Riku."

He winced at the 'Sir'. " Don't call me sir, it makes me feel old."

"Fine. Riku then," she said cheerfully. Riku stared at her, bewildered. Wasn't she going to draw a weapon or something?

He twirled the Way to the Dawn in his hand, readying it for his trademark held-upright battle stance. The Heartless Keychain sparkled. "Are you sure about this, Lenne? I'll give it my all..."

Her sienna eyes blinked. "What...? Of course I'm sure!"

"Uhmm..."

Professor Larxene's voice rose above the chatter of the onlooking crowd. "Ready!"

Riku slightly crouched, raising his free hand on level with his raised Keyblade. Lenne shut her eyes. Well, girl or not, he's not going to get beaten by anyone else than So--

_gah._

"Stance! and _fight_!"

He sprinted towards Lenne soundlessly, raising his Keyblade to attack. Well, there were Healers nearby, anyway.

She had still not opened her eyes, and cold metal was only inches from slicing into her head.

"Lenne!" he yelled, not really wanting to hurt her. To his surprise, the girl dodged his weapon easily, crouching and swinging out her booted foot to trip him. He jumped just in time to avoid her. Well, this girl was pretty good, he reasoned.

She spread her palms and a circle of light glowed underneath her feet.

_Oh crap. She's a Summoner._ Riku grimaced, now knowing why she carried no weapons. Seconds later the ground erupted from beneath his own feet and he was forced to flip backwards to avoid the upheaval of molten rock and metal chains. Something like a grappling hook erupted from the Twilight Academy Quad and dragged up with it the ugliest and most pathetic creature Riku had ever seen.

It looked like an enormous humanoid bound painfully in bloody chains, trapped halfway in two shells of bloody muscle. Raw red flesh peeked from here and there, and what looked like a holy charm was draped around its excuse for a neck. A single malevolent eye glared down at him.

Well, it certainly didn't look remotely like anything he had seen Sora summon.

_Okay. Back to reality, Riku._

To his left, two students fainted.

"Anima!" Lenne yelled. "_Pain!_"

Bolts of light erupted from its eye and sped towards him. Riku managed to deflect the first three volleys of light with the edge of his Keyblade, but he was forced to dodge the remaining volleys that never seemed to cease unless they found its target.

Tempting as it was to call on darkness and get this over with, he gritted his teeth and sprinted towards Lenne, knowing that the Summon would disappear once its Summoner was rendered defeated. No mean feat, considering that Anima was trying her best to pelt him with balls of shimmering, acidic, light.

His eyes widened as his gaze strayed past the brunette. Her guard down, Lenne looked back too--and screamed.

_"Heartless!"_

---------------------

"What do you mean, you're missing one platoon?" Sora repeated, eyebrows furrowing. The Neoshadow slinking before him quailed, and sank back into the white marble, only antennae and glowing yellow eyes visible.

_"Eh. We always miss one platoon one way or another,"_ it said timidly.

"But _one_ platoon!" he asked curiously. "You haven't acted in groups lately..."

"_We found a Princess of Heart and another Wielder," _it paused shrewdly. _"Plus, two shards of your heart."_

He scratched his head (with his right now, he remembered). "Only one platoon? That's somewhere near two hundred Heartless, and knowing the...uhm, Wielder, you'll be annihilated. Easily."

_"We're trying out a new formation, and yep, it's stronger. We're working with a Dusk platoon."_

Sora shrugged; like Kingdom Hearts ever ran out of darkness to create Heartless, which in turned ensured an endless supply of Nobodies. Ever since he had turned Heartless and Nobody, he had found out that the two groups have taken to helping each other take hearts, because they did have a common goal: to power up Kingdom Hearts. Well, who had ownership of it was a whole other matter, but right now, they were more intent on collecting hearts. One of which was his own.

Naturally, Heartless had no idea of love and all that jazz, so they didn't understand why Sora left those who had the shards of his heart alone.

Whatever. Just as long as they left Organization XIII alone.

"Good luck then. The Dusks might be still hung over froom the party," he added.

"_Oh, we only work with sober ones. Thanks for the luck, Sir Sora."_

He watched impassively as the Neoshadow sunk completely out of sight, leaving trails of darkness in its wake. Sora shrugged again; he knew for a fact none of the said Heartless and Nobody platoons would come back in one piece. If they came back at all.

Wielders were ruthless like that.

Just as long as no harm came to the Princess--he didn't know exactly why he didn't want Kairi attacked by Heartless.

Maybe it was his 'love' for her.

Or the urge to kill her himself.

Either way, it still left him feeling incredibly guilty.

-------------------

"Mhmm. This is perfect," Kairi murmured as she licked her ice cream absently. Yep. Ice cream had an amazing cooling feeling after a skirmish with both Heartless and Nobodies.

Beside her, a silver-haired boy stared at his own popsicle of blue sweet-saltiness. "It's weird, but somehow I like it. I never really liked ice cream anyway."

"...that's a crime," Hayner said, putting both elbows on the cafeteria table and tracing the end of his popsicle stick on the white plastic top, leaving trails of faint blue.

Olette growled; the brunette was a bit obsessive-compulsive when it came to cleanliness. No matter whether it was her own room or the cafeteria--messes freaked her out. Kairi learned it the hard way when Olette came upon her in her dorm room rummaging in her bag for a change of clothes after the fight. She ended up having to listen to one of the brunette's ruthless 'cleanliness' lectures.

Hayner immediately reached for a paper towel and mopped the sticky liquid up, chucking the used paper into his dinner tray.

He was good with using his Struggle bat, even if he had slain only about ten Heartless, tops. Which was saying something, considering that he wasn't supposed to be able to slay Heartless at all.

Pence sighed dreamily. "Wow. A real Heartless and Nobody battle." He patted his camera. "I got the awesomest pictures."

Hayner snorted. "You almost got killed."

"Still!"

Riku chuckled quietly. "It's just his adrenalin talking. Give him a day or two and he'll realize how close he came to Heartless-ness."

Kairi nudged him in the ribs and giggled. "Is that even a word?"

"No. I'm too lazy to think of the right word for it. Ugh, I'm beat," he yawned widely.

The platinum-haired Wielder had lived up to his title as Keyblade _Master_ on the Heartless attack earlier. He did most of the cleaning up as Twilight Academy students looked on in awe. Lenne and Anima had wiped out pretty much the rest. She frowned slightly, remembering that her Nobody had control over the Dusk Nobodies, and the battle would've been much more easier if Naminé was there.

Speaking of Naminé, where was her Nobody?

"Sleep early, then," Kairi told him softly, linking her arm with his. He blushed spectacularly, and she giggled.

Pence groaned. "It's bad enough I see Hayner and Olette's PDA everyday, but do you two _have _to add your own displays of sickly affection?"

"Pssh," Hayner smirked, hand around Olette's waist. "Get a girlfriend, Pence."

"...Shut up."

Kairi laughed.

"...there you are," a flustered blonde girl collapsed into the bench next to Riku.

"Where's Roxas?" Olette asked urgently. Kairi eyed her Nobody, who was currently engrossed in catching her breath. She jumped slightly when Riku answered the brunette's question for her.

"Aww, is he still denying he's sick?" he said bemusedly.

"I swear to God, he's the stubbornest boy I have ever met," she muttered darkly, putting her head in her hands. Kairi noticed she still had Roxas' cream half-jacket over her shoulders. "...do you people have Mega-Ethers on you?"

"Roxas' sick?" Hayner echoed, and his smile morphed into the biggest smirk Kairi had ever seen. "And Naminé's 'doctoring' him? Alone? In your room?"

She watched Naminé blush furiously and almost glow red. "I was just returning the favor!" She said hotly. "He was stupid enough to give me his jacket and then get sick himself!"

"You know," Pence choked, "I think I'm on an overdose of couple sweetness. Ugh."

"We are _not_ a couple!" the blonde almost yelled.

Kairi looked past Riku at a very red Naminé. "Don't be so defensive..."

"I am _not_ defensive!"

She exchanged glances with Hayner, Olette, Riku, and Pence. They burst into laughter simultaneously, and Riku mercifully drew out two galss vials filled with blue liquid out of his vest pocket. "Here," he set the vials down on the table in front of Naminé.

The blonde got to her feet and smiled gratefully at Riku, and shot a glare at Hayner. She turned to Olette. "How much is a Sea-Salt popsicle? Is it still twenty munny?"

The brunette giggled and nodded in reply, and Naminé stomped off, red-faced.

"What?" Kairi asked, bewildered at her Nobody's reaction.

Pence coughed loudly. "Roxas loves the blue stuff."

She stared at him.

"..."

"...oh."

"D'you think she'll hand-feed it to him?" Hayner drawled, making Olette and Kairi giggle, blushing at the thought.

Pence gagged.

--------------------

"Welcome to Commercial Gummi Ship Airlines, flight no. 287. I will be your flight attendant this trip, from Disney Kingdom outbound to Radiant Garden. Please fasten your seatbelts and--"

"Eh?" a black-suited, ponytailed redhead raised an eyebrow, adjusting his shades and placing it on top of his head. "I thought only the long-haul flights had stewardesses."

She smiled sweetly, ignoring the pointed stares of the other passengers.

"...you got that right."

...this was going to be a long night.

---------------------

_knock. knock. knock._

_knock-knock._

_knock._

_knock._

"Stop it already!" a voice hollered, and the door opened, revealing a very irritated Yuna. Her irritation evaporated once she saw who was knocking. "Don't be so enthusiastic, Riku," she said sarcastically.

"Why not?" he asked, inviting himself inside. And was ambushed by a vision of brown tackling him to the ground.

"Riku!" Selphie squealed.

He blinked, and gently shoved the brunette off him, sitting up and rubbing his head. "Okay," he said sternly. "Who let her near the sugar again?"

"She stole one of my chocolate bars!" Yuna whined, flopping back onto the bed.

"No I did not!" Selphie shot back. "Kairi did it!"

Riku's eyes traveled to the second bed nearest the window, on which a surprised redhead stared reproachfully at Sephie. "I'm not as sugar-addicted as you! And I brought my own food!"

Selphie's jade green eyes widened considerably. "You did! Lemme see!"

The sight of her pouncing on Kairi's bag was something Riku wouldn't forget for a long time. It was something akin to a rabid dog.

"Selphie! Not the choco--gah. I give up."

He crossed the room and sat next to the Princess of Heart, wrapping an arm around her shoulders as they watched Selphie rummage through Kairi's white suitcase. He looked over his shoulder, noticing that the bed nearest to the window was unoccupied, save for the various emptied vials of Hi-Potion. Naminé had earlier come to their own room and finally returned Roxas' jacket, after casting what seemed to be ten Curagas in a row. The blonde girl had fallen asleep out of exhaustion almost immediately, passing out on Roxas' bed. He and Tidus had covered the two of them with Roxas' comforter, snickering all the way.

"Selph!" Yuna pouted, crossing her arms. "Leave some for me!"

"Hey! That's my food!" Kairi said indignantly.

Riku fought the urge to roll his eyes. "So. Kairi..." he felt color rush up his cheeks. Agh. "Want to go for a walk?"

The redhead blinked, and looked up at him. "What time is it, anyway?"

"Nine in the evening."

Kairi blinked her beryl eyes slowly, then gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Just as so long you don't get any ideas."

Riku blushed indignantly. "Kai_ri_!"

She giggled.

----------------------

She stared up into the twilit sky, the one visible through the leafy crowns of trees that populated Twilight Town's woods. It was somewhat comforting that the she can still see the sky

-_sky-blue eyes the color of a summer sky endless sky blue through thick lashes-_

She shook her head vehemently, and almost tripped on a fallen branch. Riku immediately caught her hand and pulled her up. Kairi gratefully clung to his guiding arm, mind still whirling with the thought of So--

Shutting her eyes, she took deep, calming breaths, trying to clear her thoughts. Why now?

"You alright?" Rike asked concernedly, aquamarine eyes shining in the shadows.

Kairi nodded slowly, tucking a lock of ruby hair behind her ear. "Is it near?"

"Yeah, the mansion's just ahead."

Sure enough, before long, the tree trunks parted and sunset light streamed into her eyes, revealing an enormous mansion, handsome and sienna in the twilight

_sienne and mahogany and just the brownest brown hair spiky and_

"Rundown, eh? DiZ wasn't really particular about our headquarters," Riku's voice said distantly, and Kairi struggled to pull herself back to reality. She had a sneaking suspicion her Nobody was somewhere near here, no matter what Riku had said earlier that the two blondes were asleep.

The platinum-haired boy took a deep breath. "Roxas and Naminé's here."

Kairi stared at the rusty steel gate. The Disney-wrought lock had already been opened, and the gate was ajar. Well, somebody _had_ been here, and she concluded it was because of Riku's heightened ability to pick out scent that he had been able to know the two Nobodies were here. "...why're they here, then?"

Riku grimaced.

"...okay. Pretend I didn't ask."

They slipped through the gates, feet pounding soundlessly on the overgrown grass.

"Naminé's room has a spectacular view of the sunset," he explained, pushing the door open. Musty, stale air assaulted her senses, and she almost choked. As soon as her eyes finished watering, she followed Riku inside.

"Really. Riku, how could you bear to live in this place?" she wrinkled her nose. The house was well-built, she could see that. But it was in a really horrible state of disrepair. Dust an inch think carpeted the hardwood floor, and scattered pieces of crushed lumber was scattered around. A filthy glass box right in the middle of the foyer housed a sculpture of a castle--a broken castle, that was. Suits of armor gleamed forlornly in the sunlight from the windows. It was just pathetic, in any case.

"I stay in the basement," he pointed out, looking very revolted at the thought of staying here more than necessary. "That's the former dining room," Riku gestured to the door on her right, "And that's the former mansion owner's storage room," he pointed to a door on their left, which was blocked by a broken piece of wood.

She rolled her eyes. "Wow," she said sarcastically.

Riku poked her in the ribs playfully, and she giggled. They climbed the stairs and turned left, walking along the corridor. Grimy portraits covered the walls, and an opened treasure chest stood in a corner, gathering cobwebs.

"And, this is Naminé's room," he grinned. Kairi raised an eyebrow as he eased open the door.

She blinked for a few seconds, head pounding. She had expected Naminé's room to be white, but not _this_ blindingly white. Swallowing a curse, she went inside.

Which resulted in some very colorful words voiced out by a stunned Roxas.

Riku grinned.

Kairi raised an eyebrow; so _here_ they were...

Naminé was seated on a chair at the very end of a table that ran the whole length of the room, and Roxas was sitting on the table beside her. Both appeared to be poring over a small looseleaf notebook before she and Riku barged in, and both looked like deer caught in a steamroller's headlights.

"...eheh," Naminé said in a small, nervous voice. "What...uhm...brings you here...?"

"The view," Riku said simply, gesturing to the wall-to-wall windows of her room. The curtains were drawn back, and Kairi saw what he was talking about. She ran to the window and pressed her fingers to the glass. The view was truly spectacular--twilight sky and orange and reds and muted yellows with a fringe of indigo clouds, and the twilight-bathed buildings of Twilight Town, with the Clocktower clearly visible.

She smiled as she felt Riku's arms over her shoulders.

"Okaaay," Roxas' voice said, cracking in places. Kairi looked over her shoulder curiously. The two blondes were smiling sheepishly at them.

"What are you two doing here, anyway?"

Roxas exchanged glances with Naminé. "Physics!" he said, tapping a finger on the black notebook. "I really can't get it, you know, heh," he laughed nervously. The blonde girl beside him bobbed her head, smile plastered on her face.

"Oh. Well, don't let us bother you," Riku said quietly, tipping Kairi's face up and stealing a kiss.

She closed her eyes, wrapping her arms around the platinum-haired Wielder's neck, tuning out the sound of ruffling paper and muffled exclamations. "Mmmhmm...don't let us bother you..."

----------------------

His hands traveled from her shoulders to her waist, pulling her closer until his forehead was resting on hers. Aquamarine eyes stared into heavy-lidded beryl ones, and she growled throatily. Riku smiled, his lips curving slightly.

"...oh, and this one..._oh God_."

Riku and Kairi blinked at Naminé's sudden exclamation, turning to her. Roxas was kneeling beside her, elbows propped on the table as their heads came together, apparently reading something. The flaxen-haired girl clamped a hand to her mouth and stole a fearful glance at the two of them.

Roxas smiled cheerily. "Feh! Don't mind us!"

Naminé, once again, bobbed her head, with that suspicious smile on her face.

Riku's eyes traveled to the notebook they were poring over. On top of the loose, ruled pages was a tattered piece of paper that somehow looked familiar.

The blonde boy must have seen him staring. "And what's this formula for, Nam?" he asked, a little bit _too_ loudly, jabbing at the rectangle of parchment--enough to peak Riku's interest.

"Oh! That's for Materia Efficiency. Work times energy over--"

He immediately knew something was wrong when Kairi's hand slipped from his neck, and she marched over to the table where they were sitting. Naminé hurriedly slipped the piece of paper out of Kairi's immediate reach.

"Give. Me. That," Kairi said in a dangerous voice.

"Kairi," Riku said warningly, striding over the table and eyeing the item under Naminé's sprawled fingers.

He'd recognized the bloodstain on the corner anywhere.

Apparently, Kairi did also, judging from the whiteness of her face. The redhead snatched the note from her Nobody with a muffled curse, and swayed on her feet. Riku steadied her by the shoulders, and read the hurried handwriting over her shoulder.

It hit him like a speeding truck.

King Mickey's note.

"...this isn't good," he heard Roxas say distantly.

"The hell it's not," Kairi breathed, anger slurring her words together. She wrenched herself free of Riku's grip (which was saying something) and advanced menacingly on the two Nobodies, who were shrinking back visibly. Naminé had backed into her chair so much that she was in danger of falling over. Roxas had portalled over to her other side.

"Kairi, no..." he said, but he knew it was no use.

He remembered telling Kairi long ago (in an attempt to pacify her in her anger at Sora leaving) that the brunet Keyblade Master never let the note out of his sight, and kept it on his person at all times. He, too, was internally wondering, when Sora was supposed to be roaming the worlds, out of reach...

A furious Princess of Heart was something Riku had no intention of seeing, ever again. Kairi's voice broke, high-pitched with anger.

"How the _hell_ did you get this?"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

cliffie.

Yay. XD.

It's the beginning of the end, kiddies.

points I made, if you don't get it.

-Roxas had found Sora's journal where Antiform chucked it in the bushes. The lock placed by the Keyblade attracted Roxas. Riku was all too worked up over Kaikai to notice. yeah.

-He brought the journal 'cause the Organization are snoops. Yep.

-He didn't give it back to Sora 'cause he might go berserk on thinking Roxas had read his journal (which he did).

-...and yeah, he tucked the journal under his own pillow. Just in case Tidus decided to snoop. Who knows what Riku might do on reading his best-friend's journal.

-Naminé and Roxas went to the Old Mansion to read the journal, 'cause they needed the privacy. Why'd they read it?

...C'mon. I know even you'll read it.

-Anima's the most powerful summon in FFX, but a real pansy in FFX2. And yeah, I made Lenne a summoner.

-Selphie loves chocolate. Anything sweet. XD

any questions? ask me, and I'll answer.

to Ri2--yep, Naminé chained the memory down. And in my twisted mind, Gamblers and Berserkers smile. The whole lot of them.

to skilled-like-a-ninja--you made me smile. yeppers. like yeah.

Read and review, peoples. Flames do count as reviews, so go ahead.


	24. Seen

**A/N: For the love of the Creator, read this author's note first. Even if it's the first and last time you'll ever read one.**

This is a merge of Trinity and Nobody's Perfect. I have decided to merge the two. Why?

(a) The ending is merged. Also, some of the scenes in NP are critical to Trinity, and vice-versa.

(b) It takes me WAY too long to post with two of these things.

So.

The downside is, the chapters shall get longer. Either that, or I chop it in half and leave a **cliffhanger**.

**Chapter 24 of Trinity and chapter 18 of Nobody's Perfect are exactly the same.**

The next post will be in Trinity, while Nobody's Perfect will be, well, be on **permanent hiatus**, since its content is in Trinity already. I am chopping off the Trinity part of the title, so the merged ending will be under the title **You Don't Miss It 'till It's Gone**.

Look out for it.

Here are the summaries. If you have read both sister fanfics, skip the walls of text to the story already.

**Trinity Recap: ** Sora recieves a note from King Mickey, reminding him (more like ordering him) to go seal all Keyholes _alone_. Understandably, Kairi's mad that he would choose duty over love. Sora leaves and life goes on at Destiny Islands. However, the brunet, almost driven crazy by Roxas' constant nattering about his existence (b'cause Roxas did not know that he would still be Roxas after merging with Sora), brings back Organization XIII with the power given to him by Kingdom Hearts, locking himself in Kingdom Hearts as he did so.

Roxas tells Riku, but not Kairi. Naminé chains down every memory of Kairi's that has a connection to Organization XIII, since Sora, obviously, does not want her to know what he had just done.

Sora returns to seal Destiny Island's Keyhole on the eve of Destiny Academy's Halloween Dance. There, Kairi, pissed off, shatters his heart. Riku does worse: he only stands by and watches, not caring if his best friend was slowly dying of heartbreak.

So anyway. The days pass and Kairi feels more and more guilty, until the Knighting. Here King Mickey taps forbidden magic to bind Riku and Sora to the light with the use of the Dark Keyblade and the seven Princesses of Heart. However, since Kairi hates Sora's guts, her once pure touch had been twisted to the touch of darkness. Thus, it has no effect on Riku, but on Sora, it released his Antiform.

Antifrom insults Kairi, but the girl and Riku only sees that it is Sora who did so. Riku hits Sora, angry, and the confused brunet runs off into his nightmare. Antiform steps out of Sora and kills the Keyblade Master, holding onto his soul long enough to rip out his heart. King Mickey and Xemnas arrive on the scene, and Antiform falls back into Sora for refuge.

King Mickey, instead of saying that Sora's half-dead, says that the brunet has decided to continue on sealing Keyholes. Kairi snaps. Sora, knowing that he has to get rid of Antiform, stabs himself with the Dark Keyblade. It releases the thirteen shards of his heart to the Organization.

Sora is now half-Heartless and half-Nobody; neither Riku nor Kairi know. He has an unusual craving for blood and he either (a) drinks from a paopu-flavored blood tetra pack or (b) hunts down Organization members and mauls them.

Riku and Kairi are now a couple, spurred on by Kairi's antiform (now on the loose 'cause Naminé's not there to control her) whispering in her ear.

Sora attacks King Mickey to get the Reverse Keyblade, since his own Kingdom Key would not answer his call anymore.

Currently they are on a field trip to Twilight Town. It is nine fifty-seven in the evening, and it will be an evening to change everything.

**Nobody's Perfect Recap: **Roxas has just watched Sora lock himself in Kingdom Hearts. He frees Naminé from Kairi and goes back to the Castle That Never Was. Organization XIII is back.

Roxas and Naminé are confused about their relationship; the girl insists they only love each other because Sora and Kairi loves each other. They're living on borrowed feelings. Roxas insists on the opposite, but keeps quiet in order to keep Naminé happy.

Axel and Larxene, as usual, fight and demolish a whole wing of the Castle. Existing goes on for the Nobodies, and Xemnas finds out King Mickey's insane plan for a Knighting. Luxord conducts a drinking game, where (a) he wins twenty thousand munny, (b) Naminé and Larxene get drunk, (c) Roxas spends the whole evening looking out for Naminé, and (d) Axel kisses Larxene.

The Knighting goes wrong, and Xemnas portals Sora back to the Castle with the King forbidding them to tell anyone else. Sora stabs himself with the Dark Keyblade, intending to kill both himself and Antiform, but ends up releasing his heart's shards into the Thirteenth Order.

Roxas gets more and more restless, and Zexion and Larxene start to revert to their Others, who were frustrated lovers while they lived.

More Organization members fall victim to Sora's bloodthirst. Heartless attack Destiny Academy, and Roxas picks up Sora's journal. Naminé still vehemently denies that Roxas loves her and vice-versa. Axel, spurred on by Marluxia, decides to ask Roxas to stab both Zexion and Larxene with the Dark Keyblade to stop them from reverting completely. He does not want to lose Larxene.

They, currently, are on a field trip to Twilight Town, where Naminé restores the broken memories of Roxas' friends, Hayner, Pence, and Olette. Roxas is down with the flu and the girl stands guard over him the whole day, finally ending up giving him thirteen Curagas to cure him.

Larxene reverts completely to Arlene once Ienzo tells her that Zexion had already fallen.

It is currently nine-fifty seven in the evening, and they had just been caught by Riku and Kairi reading the note that started it all. It will be a night that Roxas and Naminé will never forget.

Okay. I'd better stop before somebody reports me for abuse.

**Disclaimer: **I'd be the girl who actually _knows_ what Kairi's last name is if I owned KH.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------

**XXIV: S**_ee_**n**

**--------------------**

"How the _hell_ did you get this?"

Now, Kairi wasn't really the type of person to curse--she _was_ a Princess of Heart, for crying out loud!

However, as the rough suface of the parchment rubbed against her trembling fingertips mockingly, she really did feel this was the occasion for which her behavior might be excused.

She absolutely refused to look at that piece of ragged paper for anymore time than she had to, partly because she had already committed the image to her mind. Dried crimson on one corner, coming apart at the folded edges, hastily scribbled writing in faded black ink, and a message that tore their lives apart.

Naminé's cerulean blue eyes darted everywhere except to meet her gaze. If it was possible, the blonde girl had paled even more, and her lips were pursed together.

Roxas, however, was a different story. His mouth opened and closed much like how a goldfish does when it breathes--only strained syllables and incoherent mumbles came out.

Right now, Kairi didn't really care.

All she wanted to know was _how they got the note._

"Uh," Roxas said in a voice he obviously thought was calm and even. Which, unfortunately, wasn't. "Sora gave it to me when, uhm, before he took off for the Knighting. Yeah."

"Why would he give it to you?" she demanded furiously.

"Because...he didn't want it around--" he started, but Riku cut him off with a voice that could slice through steel like a white-hot knife through butter.

"Excuse me," Kairi looked over her shoulder, catching the terrible sight of Riku in a silent fury, "but I live with Sora, and know for a fact that he doesn't let that note out of his sight. And why give it to you when he could give it to either me or Kairi?"

The blonde spiky-haired boy blanched, whipped his little black notebook from the table with a pale hand, tucked it underneath his jacket and sprang to his feet, slowly backing away.

Naminé did the same, toppling the marble chair over with sheer fright.

Both looked very panicked.

If Nobodies could feel panic.

If Kairi were in their footsteps, panic would be the least of their problems.

"_WHY!_" she screamed once more, so loudly that she swore she heard the panes of glass wobble dangerously. Salt brimmed at the edges of her eyes, threatening to spill at the slightest provocation.

If Roxas and Naminé had the note, it meant that Sora was still in contact with them. That meant they were lying. And that meant that they were hiding something; something so important that it overshadowed the need to tell her and Riku. The mere thought frightened her out of her wits; what _was_ Sora doing out there?

...but King Mickey never lied.

"...for the love of the Creator, please answer," Riku said quietly from behind her, and Kairi heard the now-familiar _swish _of a Keyblade being summoned. She didn't need to look back to know that the midnight blue Way to the Dawn was clutched securely in Riku's fist.

She ground her teeth and advanced on her Nobody. Naminé pressed herself against her white walls, partially covering a crude drawing of

_sand sky beach tree star-fruit a glorious trinity a friendship_

a very familiar tree trunk, bent and heavy with ripe paopu fruit, on which two people sat and a third person leant

_and all her memories came crashing down pounding like the surf on a golden beach cerulean and aquamarine and beryl_

"_Answer me!_" she roared, tears streaming down her face now, partly of rage and party out of fear and partly out of disbelief but mostly of the expression dawning on both the golden-haired teenagers' faces.

Pity.

Their eyes reflected it obviously.

Kairi thought she saw a tear quiver at the edge of Naminé's eye.

"_Duck!_" Roxas suddenly yelled, definite panic contorting his face. Heart pounding, she immediately buckled her knees and crouched low. She heard Riku yell a hurried Reflectga and saw sparkling shards of glass shower all around her, every piece reflecting the twilight and the sunrise and sunset.

Judgin from the stunned look on Naminé's face, the wall of windows had just shattered.

"Not _now_!" the flaxen haired girl moaned exasperatedly, skittling fingers finding the golden doorknob of her white door and hurriedly wrenching it open.

Riku pulled her up, and she whirled around, eyes widening and staring, unable to tear the gaze away.

A colossal Darkside stared back at her, Neoshadows flooding down its arms to its hand amongst the shattered glass windows and marble frames.

"Run!" Roxas screamed.

---------------

"What the _hell_ do you mean, you sent five hundred platoons?"

_"The platoon earlier was for recon, Sir. And we did send ten Darkside sentries. Just in case."_

Sora bellowed, chest tightening uncomfortably with a feeling he had not remembered feeling for a nearly a year. Fear from Roxas coursed through his veins. Fifty platoons meant nearly a hundred thousand Heartless--and those who had been sent were purely Neoshadows, which were ruthless killers.

Even for a Keyblade Master and a Princess of Heart, they stood no chance of surviving the onslaught. Not unless Kairi unleashed her powers, but the chances were remote. Even if she did, they'd have a hard time. Killing Neoshadows may be easy, but the exhaustion was a whole different thing altogether.

"_...Sir Sora?"_

"NO!" He yelled, already halfway through opening a portal to Twilight Town--to the Old Mansion. His mind worked furiously, blurting out the first thing that came to his mind. "The Princess is _mine!_"

-----------------

The Neoshadow stared at its superior as the fallen Keyblade Master disappeared into the Corridors, and chuckled inwardly.

_"...eh. Sir Sora, always taking the tastiest ones for himself..."_

-----------------

"Please?"

"Please please please? Come _on_!"

"Please?"

Xemnas sighed tiredly and narrowed his eyes. "Stay out of trouble. Don't drown anyone while we're there."

Demyx resisted the urge to whoop; that would definitely make the Superior think twice about letting him tag along on the way to Disney Castle. He was getting supremely bored in the Castle That Never Was; Axel had locked himself in his room, Marluxia had occupied himself in his garden, and both Larxene and Roxas were on that field trip to Twilight Town. Sora had portalled off somewhere. The other people in the Castle might maim him if he got too close. Hm. Maybe he had pissed them off a tad too much.

He started humming softly as Xemnas checked himself and opened a portal to the Corridors. Demyx never exactly got _why_ their leader kept on visiting someone who just ruined an innocent (back then) boy's life. If he was in the Superior shoes, heck, he'd let the monarch die anyway.

He followed Xemnas into the portal, and stepped out almost immediately into Disney Castle.

Eh. It didn't look too different from their own Castle. Except that _this_ place at least had some other color draperies than white. Scarlet red banners bearing the ebony three-linked circles of Disney hung from the ceiling, and lush (and somewhat battered) red carpet lined the marble floors. Hm. He had heard that Disney Castle had some sort of protection against darkness, so why were they able to portal in just now?

He followed Xemnas as he walked down the Colonnade, footsteps silent on the carpet. It was a miracle no palace employees were around.

The silver-haired leader stopped.

"Demyx."

"Yeah, Superior?" he asked.

"I'd rather see the King alone," Xemnas continued. "You're free to tour the Castle. Just don't let anyone know you're...well, that you're number Nine. Or else."

"Aww." He furrowed his eyebrows and pouted. "Fine."

"Don't sound so sad; you're the one who wanted to come with me in the first place."

"I said _fine_," he retorted sulkily, glaring at the Superior's back as he continued walking, presumably towards King Mickey's chambers. Fat lot of good that did him. He adjusted the silver Nobody seal stude on his earlobe (not that anyone would recognize it, c'mon, all the people here didn't believe that Organization XIII existed, much less have a symbol) and started walking aimlessly.

It sucked that he couldn't portal around--if someone saw him stepping out or even summoning a portal they'd surely raise the alarm, and Demyx was absolutely positive that the Superior would not like that.

Ack.

"...yes. Tomorrow, Etoile. We'll try again. Noo, tomorrow's the last trial. Out! Shoo!"

He looked over his shoulder in time to see a girl with immaculately-curled hair and a waterfall of pink satin skirt huff out of a door and stomp down the corridor in the opposite direction. Said door slammed shut and the corridor was silent once more.

Demyx's ears perked up. If he wasn't mistaken, that was _music_ that he had heard. Oh yeah. That could really brighten up his day. Walking up to the door, he wrenched it open.

"I _told_ you Etoile! Tomo--" a brunette paused her oncoming tirade, and sighed. "Oh. I thought you were somebody else."

But he was too preoccupied with gawking at the room he had just entered. The walls were all draped in black, and no less than three tiers of seats occupied the entire room (which was the size of a small auditorium) in a semicircular fashion. Every chair had a music stand in front of it, and only a few people were seated--some were practicing violin, others flutes, still others oboes and other instruments. Shiny, brass and silver instruments.

His fingers itched to summon his Sitar, but something told him that wasn't exactly the right thing to do.

"Nice, eh? I take it this is your first time to enter the Music Room," she commented happily.

"Imaginative name," he said dryly, eyes roving.

She clasped her hands together. "Soundproof. We have our own acoustic system and the biggest range of instruments you could ever find in the Worlds. The best musicians, too."

Demyx blinked. So _this_ was the Disney Orchestra Larxene was harping on about? It was awesome. Well, to him, that was.

"Hey, can I borrow one of your guitars?" he requested. If he didn't play any time soon his fingers might just take over his mind and summon his Sitar for him. A water-wrought instrument appearing out of thin air was something people would definitely consider freaky.

The brunette shrugged. "Sure. Anything to get you youngsters interested in music."

He snickered, watching as she retrieved a guitar case from one of the many hung on the walls and unzipped it. Youngster? He didn't think he looked _that_ young, thank you very much.

"Hey...how come _that_ violin isn't in a case?" he asked, pointing to one of the instruments cradled in braces high up the wall.

"Oh, that," she sighed dreamily. "That's a violin I have reserved for an amazing violinist. If she decides to come back..."

"Ah. Larxene," he mumbled.

She handed him the guitar with an air of wide-eyed surprise. "You know her?"

Demyx shrugged. He had the temptation to say 'Not only that, but she long ago tried to kill me on a regular basis', but his words came out as "Yeah, we're friends."

"Wow. Well, if you see her, please tell her to stop by Disney Castle again and see me, Shelinda."

_Not an option_, he thought inwardly, since Larxene was much too preoccupied with trying not to revert, and Zexion was making that a very hard thing to do. But he nodded all the same. "Sure, Shelinda. I'm Demyx, by the way."

She smiled warmly, and clapped her hands. "Well, Demyx. Want to start with the basics?"

"I know a little," he answered. "Let me play something. Erm. How about this?" He ambled over to a random chair and plopped down on it, instantly recognizing the notes on the white music sheet clipped to the stand. He must've stumbled across the seat of the solo guitarist.

Perfect.

Shelinds looked dubious. "That's a slightly advanced piece, Demyx. If you know only a little, then that is definitely not for you."

"Nah," he waved a hand dismissively, and poised a hand over the strings. "It's okay, I can try, can't I?"

She frowned. "Go ahead."

Demyx grinned. She had no idea that his music could actually kill if he wanted too. Not to brag, but he was _that_ good. Maybe it was a good thing that he left Xemnas alone, after all.

-----------------

They hurtled through the hallway, Kairi almost toppling over the handrail twice. Heartless rose from the floor as they streaked past, black antennae of darkness brushing their feet as they ran. It took the combined force of Riku and Roxas' Keyblades to merely clear their way through the first landing of the grand stairs.

Riku cursed out loud, and Roxas did the same. Naminé's grip on her hand tightened.

The first floor was not visible under the teeming darkness that was thousands of Neoshadows. They seemed to be waiting for them to come down. Even as she thought of this Neoshadows rose beneath her feet, and it took a few well-placed and hasty swipes of the Way to the Dawn to clear them.

"Summon, now!" Naminé yelled, releasing Kairi's hand and raising her own, in imitation of her summoning her Dusks on the beach over half a year ago. Roxas crossed Oblivion over the Oathkeeper, and frightening Slayer Nobodies answered his call, claws sharp and shining in the orange light.

Dusks flooded the stair steps behind the blonde girl, and the two Nobodies simultaneously gestured to the Heartless flood, shouting one word.

"_Attack!_"

What happened after was pure chaos. Kairi dearly wished she had the foresight to bring her crossbow. She planted a foot firmly into one Neoshadow's general torso and kicked it into the nearest suit of armor, backing into Riku slightly to avoid a swipe at her face.

"Riku! Kairi! Get out of this place!" she discerned Roxas' strained voice over the Heartless screams, and the platinum-haired Wielder struggled to clear a path for them through the creatures. His fingers pulled away from hers, and Kairi was pushed deeper into the Neoshadows. She was knocked down to her feet, hands scrabbling uselessly at the ancient layer of dust covering the hardwood floors.

She desperately focused her magic on _just getting out of here_, and prepared to cast the most powerful Firaga she had ever dared to cast.

"_Kairi!"_ she heard Naminé scream shrilly, and no less than ten Dusks immediately set to work clearing the area around her. Kairi took a deep breath and bellowed ," _Firaga!"_, immediately incinerating both Heartless and Nobody around her in a three-foot radius.

But it was no use. The more she defeated, the more they seemed to be spurred on. She started wondering whether this might be a trap or not; she had never seen Heartless in a flock as large as this. Exhaustion was starting to creep in, and she yelled out Riku's name. He shouted back in reply, the sight of him blocked by the Neoshadows. Roxas' Keyblades were carving death into the darkness, but Naminé was nowhere in sight.

It was hopeless.

Fatigue seeped into her very bones.

She fervently hoped for a miracle.

"_No! Retreat! RETREAT!"_

...and miraculously, the Heartless crowd seemed to thin around her, until she could finally see Riku and Roxas, albeit still a bit blocked by the number of Heartless around each of them, clamoring for the Keyblades' touch.

...what?

What did that mean, retreat?

And it seemed she had heard the voice before...

Her feet seemed frozen to the spot in fear, and they refused to follow her mind's commands. She cried out for the platinum-haired Wielder in fright. "Riku!"

"_Get DOWN!" _a voice yelled hoarsely, and Kairi vaguely saw a shadow hurtle out of the advancing Neoshadows in front of her, knocking aside the Heartless and pinning her to the ground.

A Neoshadow lashed out with razor-sharp claws at where her neck should have been if she had not been knocked down.

Oh God, a talking Neoshadow, she thought, as her vision blurred under a veil of tears, her assaulter shadowed by the crowd of Neoshadows pressing against them. It turned to face her left, shouting out orders. Incredibly stupid orders, if she might add. She stared at the sickly yellow eye with revulsion, but she couldn't take her eyes off it.

"_Retreat! Damn it!_" it yelled, pressing her shoulders to the floor almost cruelly, knees (-_oh God did Neoshadows have knees?-_) straddling her and pinning her hands to the floor. She was feeling incredibly caged, and her feet drummed uselessly on the ground. Cripes, it was either she got killed by an entire horde of Neoshadows, or by a single one.

She heard Naminé scream.

"Let me go!" she yelled as loud as she can, hoping to shatter whatever Heartless had for eardrums. If they could hear, that was.

The shadowed figure over her trailed off mid-command, slowly turning to face her. "K-Kairi...?"

Sky-blue eye and glowing yellow eye stared into her own eyes blankly, and she felt its--his hands tighten convulsively around her shoulder. Her breath caught in her throat as mahogany brown hair fell haphazardly over sky blue, and ebony did the same over pale yellow. Lips moved soundlessly, pouting, brooding lips she had not seen for nearly a year.

It was so impossible her head spun.

_black and darkness and light and splotches of crimson and_

A silver crown pendant dangled on its equally silver chain, sparkling in the twilight streaming in from the shattered windows.

Her heart constricted painfully, and she managed to choke out the first thing that came to her mind.

"...Sora?"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N: **Demyx does have an important role! Believe me! It's in the Grand Plot!

I have noticed that you people have, er, rather, vehement questions about the ultimate fate of this fanfic. Well.

I am sure this WILL end a Sokai. And I am sure someone dies. Or fades away. Or something. They just...go. I'm not entitling it "You Don't Miss It 'till It's Gone" if somebody's not gonna _go_, right? Right?

Happy or sad ending? Ah. Nobody knows except me.

Kairi? The journal?

Well, I can say one thing. When she reads it, it's not going to be a pretty sight.

And for those people who detest cliffhangers---I'm sorry. But I do have a truckload of those things. So I'll try to update fast. Key word there being _try_.

Now, tell me if it's a good idea to merge. If not, I'll try to stick to Trinity and Nobody's Perfect, anyway.

Read, review. Flames are accepted.


	25. Confession

**A/N: **So. It's a merge, then.

I just found out that there's going to be a Final Mix for KHII and a remake of KH:CoM for the PS2. Unfortunately, as of now, they're only releasing it in Japan. Pssh.

And it has another Secret trailer too, where one of the faces of the armored guys is revealed. Aww. I wish that they'd see that KHII:Final Mix + and Re: CoM would make a killing out of Japan. I wish. I hope. Ack. Anyway, it's due out spring of 2007.

**Disclaimer: **Don't own it. Wish I did, though.

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------------------------

**XXV: **Con**_fess_**ion

------------------------

The sound of his name from her lips was almost enough to drive him berserk. After a long year of training and wallowing in the darkness of his own heart and the guilt and the betrayal, his name carried on her voice was the sweetest thing he had ever heard.

And also one of the most painful.

"Get your Heartless out of here!" Roxas yelled, bringing him out of his reverie. He blinked rapidly, crystal tear and crimson droplet splattering on Kairi's flushed cheeks.

He had immediately portalled here upon getting wind that the Heartless were sending fifty patrols to the Old Mansion--blindly, to tell the truth, because he didn't really think what would happen if Riku and Kairi caught sight of him. All he thought about was Kairi's safety. But now...

"Sora! _Your Heartless!_" Naminé's voice came shrilly, the Dusks dancing their deadly dance among the Heartless ranks, avoiding their retaliating attacks with ease.

He shook his head vehemently and quickly tore away his gaze from her beryl orbs, fearing that his--and her--sanity would snap. He made to stand up, but the moment he eased his knees off her hands her arms shot up and pulled his collar down, bringing his face closer to hers.

He saw fear bloom in in her eyes.

Something in Sora clicked, and he pulled himself roughly free of the Princess' grip, feeling that he left a part of his soul with her on the ground. He scrambled to his feet and backed away quickly, feet unsteady, until his back touched the brown, peeling wall of the Mansion.

Sky-blue met aquamarine.

Sora screamed, hands covering his face as if Riku's disbelieving stare burned, and screamed for the Heartless, beseeching them to retreat and leave the Princess and the Wielder alone so that the blessed moment in which he leaves would come much much sooner and then he can just forget and--

"_What the hell did you do to Kairi?" _Riku's voice bellowed, and the unmistakable Heartless screams followed as Sora heard pounding footsteps coming closer to him.

"_FOR THE LOVE OF THE CREATOR, HEARTLESS, RETREAT NOW!_" he screamed once more, snapping both eyes open and portalling behind a stunned Riku and pushing him down with inhuman strength to avoid a Darkside's sweeping hand. Sora then leapt and clung to the railing of the second-floor stairs in mid-flip, swinging over and landing besides a frightened Naminé, who was very near her Twilight-Thorn summoning point. The girl was almost in hysterics.

But then again, so was he.

Kairi, obviously dazed, had gotten to her feet and was currently staring at him, speechless, oblivious to the Dusks and Heartless battling it out around her. Riku, however, had his eyes narrowed into nothing but slits as he hacked his way up the stairs, mouth set in a grim line.

"Naminé! Please!" he pleaded, almost heaving up the girl bodily and throwing her on her unsteady feet towards Riku, out of sheer panic. No, he couldn't let Riku and Kairi see him like this! Cripes, his once best friend was now trying to kill him! Once again, blind panic took over, and he hollered a plea to the flaxen-haired girl in front of him. "Chain it _down_!"

She spared him a fleeting glance, cerulean eyes reflecting immense guilt. "You are insane!" she yelled, summoning another Dusk platoon.

Sora did something he had only done once before in his lifetime.

He knelt on both knees and let his hands rest on the dusty floor. Sora bowed his head, watching the tears, both clear and crimson, puddle beneath him. "...please." He whispered. It was almost the same two years ago, except that this was Naminé instead of Saïx and instead of saying no like the berserker did, she nodded in a quiet _yes_.

She shivered slightly and sprinted down the stairs, now Heartless-free courtesy of both Riku and Roxas' slaughter and Sora's command of retreat. She touched a pale finger to a surprised Riku's forehead as she streaked past, making him stagger slightly.

"Now!" Roxas yelled, waving his Oathkeeper as he dismissed his Slayers and ran to Kairi's side, ready to catch her if she tried to escape. Instead, the redhead was still staring blankly at Sora, following his every move with a haunted gaze.

Sora tore his eyes away from the sight as Naminé reached her Other, and presumably, chained her memories down. He shut his eyes tight and sank back to the ground, whimpering. Now Kairi and Riku would not remember seeing him...maybe it was better that way.

God, that hurt.

His blonde Nobody caught his attention by a well-aimed Blizzaga, Sora threw Roxas a glare as he pulled out a shard of steel-hard ice out of the small of his back. He was frantically gesturing at him, and Sora immediately understood--the chaining down would have no effect if Riku and Kairi saw him again, wouldn't it?

It only took a split second, but it seemed like an excruciating eternity to Sora.

He portalled away from his once close friends.

He portalled away from Kairi.

Never had he felt so alone.

---------------------

"Riku! Firaga that thing!" Roxas' voice came from what seemed miles away. He had to blink more than a few times to gather his wits enough to jump out of the way as a Neoshadow clawed at his chest.

"Right," he muttered, summoning a Dark Firaga fireball and hurling it at the Heartless' torso, making it dissipate into a wave of darkness. He stared for a moment at the heart that floated out of the darkness' remains, staring at the pinkish light as it sparkled in the sunset--

"Get down from the clouds!" Roxas hollered once again, voice frustrated. Riku blinked once more, and the blonde smacked him lightly on the back of the head. "What is up with you?"

"Huh...?"

"Get off his case, Roxas," This time, it was Naminé's voice. He glanced up to see the pale-blonde girl come up to them, gently dragging Kairi with her. The redhead seemed just as disoriented as him. Her beryl eyes still held a blank glaze over them, and she was struggling to keep up with her Nobody. "It was a Heartless attack. Maybe it just got to them. It's pretty late, you know."

The blonde boy just shrugged in reply, dismissing both Keyblades in spatters of light and echoes of blackness.

"Heartless, huh?"

Roxas stared at him as if he had sprouted an extra hand or something. "What? You're a Keyblade Master and you suddenly go all woozy after a Heartless battle?"

"Shut it, Ro--"

"What time is it?" Kairi suddenly shrieked, wrenching her hand free from Naminé's grip. Riku swallowed painfully, there was no way to guess what time it was. None of them usually wore watches, and all of them had probably left their cellphones back at the dormitories. The fact the Twilight Town's shadows never lengthened due to the fact that it was stuck in eternal twilight didn't help much. "Riku! We left the dorm at nine! Curfew's at _ten!_"

"Kai, it was a Heartless attack," Naminé pointed out. "It's perfectly understandable."

"B-but!" the redhead cried out, wringing her hands. "M-me and Riku went out alone! At night! Who knows what Professor Larxene and Zexion might think!"

Riku snorted derisively. Zexion was still a touchy subject, and from the look on Roxas' face, they'd really rather not talk about number Six.

However, if they broke curfew, even if it was because of Heartless, the school admin was still going to question _why_ the Keyblade Master and the seventh Princess of Heart was out so late. And if that reached the Mayor's ears..._in trouble _would be a massive understatement.

"Well?" he took Kairi's hand securely in his. "Let's get outta here!"

Roxas nodded enthusiastically, and exchanged glances with Naminé. He was expecting the two blonde Nobodies to sprint out, but Naminé just held out swept out her hand and a portal to the Corridors formed.

"Are you--" Riku started, but she cut him off.

"It's much faster this way, Riku," she tilted her head thoughtfully as she stepped through. "No-one's going to see us come in."

Roxas shoved him roughly in the general direction of the portal. As a result, Kairi almost fell on top of him, tripping into the Corridors, making her wince in pain. Riku suddenly had a horrible realization: the Corridors were pure darkness, and Kairi was pure of heart--no darkness whatsoever. It would be excruciating for her--"No! Kairi can't pass through! She's of the realm of light!"

Naminé rolled her eyes. "Don't be stupid, Riku. No-one's immune to darkness. She's already gone through one of Axel's portals, remember? And she's not as pure as she seems, you know."

And with that, she vanished completely into the portal. Roxas 'pssh'-ed behind them. "Cripes, you two, what's the use of split-second portalling if you take forever to get in?"

To his amazement, the redhead herself dragged him inside the oval of pulsating darkness as she directed a glare at the blonde Keyblade Master.

"Wait. I think you have something on your face..." he murmured, wiping away a stain from her furiously blushing cheek. Maybe she got it from the Heartless skirmish.

She pulled him deeper into the Corridors, following her Nobody.

...and curiously, his fingers smelled strongly of iron.

Almost like blood.

He blinked once again, and yawned. _I need to get more sleep._

---------------------

Shelinda never thought too much of giggling. Oftentimes she found it rather crude and childish.

But she couldn't help but giggle now, as the yound blonde man in front of her animatedly finished one of the harder pieces for the guitar. He was something of a natural. Where did King Mickey get his musicians...?

Demyx, he called himself...a tall, rather lanky teenager with unusual taste in hairstyles. His icy blue eyes fit nicely with his black three-fourths sleeved shirt and black jogging pants, over equally black rubber shoes. His right ear was pierced with two unusually-shaped studs. And the smile--no, the grin. Can't forget the charming show of perfect teeth. In fact, he looked more like some college kid out for a jog, or a workout. He didn't seem to be the type to be extraordinarily gifted in music.

But then again, that blonde violin prodigy, Larxene, was someone who didn't seem to extraordinarily gifted, either. And they both had the same taste in color: black and silver.

The boy (for he was still young, no matter how much he said that he was twenty-four years old), it seemed, had visited Disney Castle in hopes of catching a glimpse of the sick monarch. Unfortunately for him (but so much more fortunate for her), he got lost in the massive hallways of the Castle and stumbled upon the soundproof orchestra room.

"...and a-one and a two and a three." He declared with a flourish, the piece that he had been playing for the lest few minutes. It was the hardest for guitar in her orchestra's repertoire, but Demyx had gone through effortlessly, yet still managed for it to sound professional. Very professional, in fact. "Yay. Miss Shelinda, you got any other pieces in there?"

"None that you haven't played yet," she offered.

He grinned, and put his hands on his hips. "...lemme try writing one!"

Shelinda was more than delighted to provide him with no less than five blank sheets of paper and a brand-new fountain pen. This kid was good. Really good.

-------------

Axel, once again, woke up with a headache. If that wasn't enough, his stomach churned with foreboding.

Of course, given the thing that he's going to have to do to make Roxas summon the Dark Keyblade and stab Larxene with it, it's not surprising.

But Axel has to do what he has to do to get rid of Larxene's shard of heart and stop her from reverting. He can't lose the Savage Nymph. Not when he'd just found out that he won't be able to exist sanely without her.

"And so sleeping beauty awakes," Marluxia snickered from the doorway of his room.

He groaned. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to realize you're pretty insane. Now buck up; they're bound to portal back here soon --- their field trip, whatever that is, is probably finished," the brunet number Eleven cocked his head thoughtfully. "I'm counting on you to get our Larxene back."

Axel stared at him.

Marluxia's mouth shaped itself into an 'o', before widening into a smirk. "Oh, sorry, my bad," he said sarcastically. "Not _our_ Larxene. _Your_ Larxene."

Unfortunately, the Graceful Assassin had portalled out in time to avoid the Firaga aimed at his oh-so-pretty brown locks.

He had a feeling that this day won't be so good.

--------------

The Gummi Ship trip back home was rather uneventful, to say the very least. Well, if you didn't count Roxas' and Seifer's farewell scuffle, the massive group of people that turned out to see them off, the twice-near deadly encounters with fragments of Heartless-ships, and the rough landing on the Destiny Islands tarmac.

As usual, with long, boring trips, he and Kairi had slept almost all the way, only to be woken up by the almost inane giggling of Professor Larxene, who, strangely, was wearing all white. The blonde priestess had then taken to humming under her breath, something that Riku had never known her to do so before. However, at the sight of the 'new' Larxene, Roxas and Naminé had immediately blanched and clammed up.

He couldn't sleep off his gut feeling that they had forgotten something. He had a suspicion it was Roxas' cheeriness, however.

The blonde was as surly as the day Riku had taken him down in the World That Never Was, and that was saying something. Naminé, however, had ignored his surliness (she was probably immune to it) and kept on talking, ignoring the fact that the glares Roxas was hurling her way was enough to make a grown man cry.

"Okay, people," Professor Zexion called, waving a hand over his head as they entered Destiny Academy's threshold. Riku slung an arm around Kairi's shoulders. "Head count!"

He sighed boredly, and started to play with a lock of Kairi's hair as Professor Larxene rattled off names.

He _forgot_ something. It was on the tip of his tongue, and for the life of him, he couldn't figure what it was.

What the _heck_ was it...?

--------------

"Soo...I think Lexaeus is planning to have Japanese night scheduled next Tuesday," she said happily, if not in a bit of an undertone. Naminé yawned and drew her hair once again over her shoulder, before resuming her monologue. Well, it wasn't really a monologue, but the blonde just kept on talking even if all Roxas did was grunt the occasional yes and nod. "They're having some of my Dusks go and cut marble chopsticks..."

Tuning her voice out, Roxas scowled at the pavement. If looks could kill, and if concrete could die, he'd have left a trail of death all the way from Twilight Town.

Existing was against him today.

"That's it, everybody's here and accounted for. You can go. Quiz in Physics on Moday," Zexion was saying, waving a hand to shoo them home.

Beside him, Larxene paused a while, before adding, "Practicals in Healing Arts. Study and practice!"

He turned to the silver-haired Wielder and the ruby-locked Princess behind them. "Naminé and I'll have a quick word with the professors, 'kay?" he said in the most even voice he could manage.

Kairi shrugged. "Sure. See you two on Monday!"

"Pssh. Practicals in Healing! " Riku groaned. "Roxas! I'll give you a call sometime later--I need a tutor in concentration..."

"Okay," Roxas answered in a very tight voice, before dragging Naminé away. She threw him a look of indignation as she waved a hurried goodbye to the two.

Amidst the groans and disbelieving 'aww, quiz?'-es, Roxas shoved his way through the crowd, his fingers in an iron clamp around Naminé's slender wrist. The blonde number Twelve was wearing all white today--white sleeveless turtleneck, white capris, white sandals, white everything. Problem was, Larxene never wore white sleeveless turtlenecks, white capris, and white sandals. Nothing ever _that_ girlish. In fact, she absoutely refused to wear anything else than her black coat. _And_ the blonde seemed especially happy today. Giggly, almost.

Heck. Screw almost. She _was_ unnaturally giggly.

Larxene does _not_ giggle, thank you very much.

"You. Two," Roxas paused, looking around to see if everybody had gone out of earshot. Whatever. He'd cast Silence if need be. Naminé whispered a vehement "_what the heck is going ON?"_ before he shushed her. "We need to talk."

Larxene exchanged unreadable glances with Zexion. "...you are...Roxas, right?" she said uncertainly.

"Larxene, you ought to know that, I'm a number below you."

"Um," she pursed her lips. "Erm. How do I say this."

Naminé's fingernails dug into his own arm, and the Look he threw her way couldn't make her budge. "How do you say what?" she asked shrilly.

Zexion sighed.

The blonde shuffled her sandalled feet. "I'm sorry to break this to you, but...Larxene. She's. Um. Gone."

"Zexion, too. We've both _reverted_ completely," the lilac-haired scientist added, putting emphasis on the word _reverted_.

Roxas stared at them, stunned, mouth working, but his voice seemed to have crawled back into his larynx and shut itself within for an indefinite period of time.

"So. I probably should call you Arlene," the blonde girl holding onto his arm gazed curiously at the priestess, before turning to stare at Zexion. Or, more fittingly, "--and you, Ienzo."

They beamed.

Roxas felt like throwing up.

This day was just not his day.

He suddenly jerked Naminé towards the opposite direction, leaving the surprised couple behind. The girl made no protest. In fact, Roxas had to half-support her before she gathered her wits and withdrew her arm from his.

First of all, Larxene and Ienzo reverted. The Castle seemed like a very hazardous place to be once Axel found out.

Then, Sora had shown up once again, this time right in front of Kairi and Riku. And as expected, he and Naminé had to cover it up. He was getting pretty sick and tired of doing that.

Then, the girl he'd gladly fade away for was talking nonstop. Now, this wouldn't be such a bad thing, if Naminé wasn't nattering on and on and _on_ about stting _him_ up on a blind date.

It hurt. It actually, honest-to-goodness _hurt like hell_.

He kept his eyes on the ground, hoping to the high heavens that somebody would knock sense into this girl and make her stop believing that what he's feeling is _false_, just because he's a Nobody and Nobodies aren't supposed to feel. She's acting all tough right now but Roxas knows deep down inside she's wailing because she's been forced once again to chain down memories that she had no right to chain down.

They're both being used once more, and right now, they're too tired to do anything about it. Too tired of existing in general.

Roxas scowled.

-------------

Panic.

That was something Sora did _not_ want to feel.

_eh, buddy-boy? The other you's about to kill, from the looks of it. Lookie._

"Shut up," he told Antiform, sipping feverishly from the bright, cheery yellow tetra-pack. Which was filled with paopu-blood. Once, a long time ago, he would've thrown up at the very thought of swallowing blood that was not his, but right now, it was all that he could think of.

Sora had just discovered that he and Roxas still shared a link. A Nobody-Other link, if you will, and if Roxas felt extreme emotion, Sora himself would feel it too. Now Roxas was definitely furious; he was just keeping his anger under wraps to the best of his abilities. And if Roxas was mad, it meant that he couldn't concentrate. And that meant he was losing control. And that meant the chances that his Antiform would break free once more was high. Very high. Panicky-very-high.

He took another sip, and the carton squeezed itself in with a disgusting squelching sound. He chucked it to one side, making an audible _bop_ as it bounced off the massive glass windows of the Castle That Never Was. The blood that was left in the pack left tiny red droplets on the pristine white marble floor.

The blood was nearly not enough. Antiform was deliriously happy with all the blood Sora was drinking and all the hatred Roxas was feeling. No. The blood was _not_ enough!

_aww, c'mon, Sowwa. let's have another go at King Mick-o!_

"No, Antiform, not now!" he groaned frustratedly. Whatever Roxas was doing now, he _had_ to stop! The anger flooding through the link was almost unbearable. Now, Sora did have an option--he could just cut Roxas off and the painful madness would be gone like _that_, but Antiform would have free reign. But if he waited too long,. Antiform would break free on his own, anyway. Either way, he was screwed.

_So let's have a go at King Mick-o already!_ Antiform cajoled. _Come on!_

_"_Arrgh!" Sora bellowed, hate and panic and anger and sadness rushing into his head; Roxas was fuming, panic was taking over him, Antiform laughing loudly, and he himself drowning in sadness as he realized never would Kairi and Riku see him as the same ever again.

The look on his...no, _the_ Princess' face haunted him.

How could she love a monster?

How could she love _him?_

How could she love somebody who _does not feel love_?

How could he _love_?

Taking a swipe at the tears brimming at the edge of his eyes, Sora portalled out, not really caring where the Corridors took him. All he hoped (like he could even hope! He was only remembering!) was that he ended up somewhere quiet. Somewhere he could rearrange his thoughts and just...just let _go_.

He didn't realize that he had forgotten to bring another blood pack.

---------------

"So, what about Lenne? She's pretty and smart. Also rich," she added, staring straight ahead on the concrete pavement. The elementary treehouse was just around Pavilion II, and she could spot the stragglers who were waiting for their parents to pick them up. Funny how Somebodies wasted time travelling all over the place. "Can't forget rich."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Aside from the fact that we really don't have a need for money, Lenne's already going out with Shuyin," he recited in a bored voice.

"What do you mean, we?" Naminé blinked. "This is for you, Roxas! You get to love a Somebody!"

The blonde boy shrugged, looking away.

She felt a stab of pain in her shard of heart. She bit her lip, knowing that it could very well be hers or Roxas'; they still did share a shard of heart, and it somehow forged an emotional bond between them. She had only discovered it because of the sheer panic they both had felt when the Kairi and Riku saw the note. But it wasn't stopping her from living a life as a Somebody. And that started with getting Roxas' mind off _her_.

God forbid they could read each other's minds...that was a scary idea.

"..or how about Selphie? She'd balance your scowls out," she said in a cheery voice, attempting to imitate the brunette's unmistakable hyper-on-sugar enunciation. "You two would be perfect!"

Speaking of scowls, the one he was giving the pavement now was enough the crack the concrete. Crush it to powder, even.

Swallowing, she continued on. She swore to herself that one day she'd break down Roxas' illusions that what he felt for her was true love. Like that was possible anyway. Aside from the fact that Nobodies couldn't feel, it was _Sora's_ heart they were sharing. Therefore, it was Sora acting through Roxas, Sora saying that he loved Kairi. Because she's Kairi's shadow and she'll remain like that forever. It was like a horrible sort of birthmark.

Roxas growled, making a few of the preschoolers frolicking in the playground burst into tears.

Naminé sighed and threw a glare at him, which seemed to bounce off him and puddle unceremoniously on the pavement. "Well, Valentine's Day is something like a month away," she murmured dreamily, excited over participating in something she had never been able to understand properly. Love, especially when you haven't the ability to feel it, was definitely something to celebrate about. "Girls are bound to attack you then. D'you have any idea how many girls are dying to be in my place right n--"

"Naminé, shut up."

She blinked. Roxas had stopped walking and had whirled around to face her, and it was a truly terrifying sight to see him angry--even more so than Riku and Sora, for she had never seen him _that_ furious. Anger blazed in his once-again stormy blue eyes.

"Wha...?" she stammered, stung by his bluntness.

He ground his teeth audibly and took hold of her shoulders roughly, his grip almost painful--no, it _was_ painful. Her shard of heart galloped along, and if she opened her mouth once more, she was sure they would rattle in fear.

"Stop breaking my heart, will you!" he yelled furiously, shaking her, eyes shimmering with a film of unshed tears. Roxas trembled, fingers curling upon her shoulders. "I love _you_, and _only you, dammit!_"

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AHAHAH DID YOU REALLY THINK I'D LET KAIRI SEE SORA JUST LIKE THAT?

WE NEED A MORE DRAMATIC ENDING!

Yay!

erm.

CLIFFIE ATTACK! rawr.

Hopefully, I get to end this right on Halloween. Hopefully. That'd be nice.

Nobody's Perfect is now on permanent hiatus.

Now. Reviews, please? I did update fast, right? Riiiight?

Flames are okay!


	26. Discovery

I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING FOR SO LONG. SO SOOO SORRY. I HAVE LEARNED THAT ONE SHOULD NEVER CRAM PROGRAMMING. College is driving me insane, and I still have to write two programs for my finals. Really, I'd rather be writing fanfiction, but no dice. To make up for it, this chapter is long as **hell**. Really. 6000+ words and COUNTING. And IT IS A CLIFFHANGER. So SORRY FOR THAT.

Erm.

The 250th reviewer will get a oneshot courtesy of yours truly, numina-naminé, any pair (het, yaoi, but no yuri, thankyouverymuch), any genre, any rating. So. I'll PM the 250th reviewer, and I'll get it up in a week, if I'm lucky.

T for language and violence. ROXAS WILL BE A JERK. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

KH is not mine. Obviously. But someday it would be.

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----------------------

**XIX: **Dis_co_**ve**ry

----------------------

"Your Majesty?"

Rinoa sighed, and collected her energy, letting the excess power overflow into her white sorceress wings. Whoever it was, she was sure to look intimidating. Somehow, people with amber irises and white wings scared the hell out of people. Especially amber eyes.

The armored guard squirmed uncomfortably, not daring to look at her post next to King Mickey's bed, opposite Queen Minnie's. "There is someone who wants to see His Majesty, Queen Minnie, Sorceress Rinoa. He is cloaked in black and--"

Mickey made a weak whimpering sound, and Queen Minnie immediately tended to her husband. Rinoa cast a Curaga before standing up. "I'll see the guest first, if he does not object."

"Well..." the guard disappeared for a moment, then returned. "...he says fine."

She swept out of the room, leaving the royal couple behind closed doors. The guardsmen flanking the doors flinched as she passed them. Rinoa smiled, and walked up to the hooded figure leaning against a white marble pillar. "It's nice to finally be able to meet you, Xemnas."

Astonishment shook his voice. "I...did not expect the sorceress to be so..._young_."

"I stopped aging nearly twelve years ago," she replied calmly, flaring her wings. "What about you?"

"Seven. Once I got a shard of the Wielder's heart, the years have caught up with me," he drew back his hood, and it was her turn to be surprised. Amber-orange eyes the color of clear twilight gazed down on her, and she felt herself blanch. So _that_ was what she looked like if she called on her sorceress powers. It wasn't a pretty sight. "Ah. The infamous Sorceress Rinoa."

She turned her back on him, biting her lip. Once she saw his face the memories came rushing back. "So."

"I was only Ansem's apprentice, Rinoa. I had no power to change his mind over sending you---"

She gritted her teeth. "Why are you here?"

He crossed his arms, uncrossed them, and crossed them once again. "I always come here to check up on the King. And to give a report on the boy."

"You're lucky the Cornerstone's still Disabled."

"Same to you."

She blinked. "I don't use the Corridors of Darkness."

"Stop disillusioning yourself. You're of the darkness--"

Rinoa hastily changed the subject, lest she turn berserk and annihilate Disney Castle. "How's Sora doing?"

Xemnas stared at the floor, refusing to speak. Sighing, she concentrated and started to delve through his memories. However, she was immediately blocked --- nobody in her entire life had been able to do that. "What the ---"

"Don't waste your time," he said condescendingly, smirking."I was going to tell you, anyway."

She gritted her teeth, seeing the former habits of Xehanort surfacing. The lab assistant was like an older (and very mischievous) brother to her, since they both had connections to Ansem's rule --- he was Ansem's apprentice, and she was the daughter of Ansem's right hand, General Caraway. And she was also the close, very close friend, of Ansem's adopted son, Leon...but that was far from the subject at hand.

"What do you already know about the boy?" Xemnas' voice broke her out of her thoughts.

She shook her head slightly. "All King Mickey can give me is fuzzy; even his thoughts are vague --- Sora gave him a good hitting. I know Sora stabbed himself with the Dark Keyblade, and I know that he's now half-Heartless and half Nobody. And he's pissed off."

"True," he nodded, "but only when his control is not around."

"Roxas. I know him from Twilight Town."

"Naminé's powers did not work on you?"

She rolled her eyes and walked next to him, sitting precariously on the marble ledge. "Obviously."

"You know a lot of things, don't you?" he asked bemusedly.

"I inherited all the memories of all the former sorceresses," she said boredly. "That's about two-hundred thousand years' worth of information. Scrambled and some of it vague, but information nonetheless."

"Anything there about a fallen Keyblade Master?"

Rinoa fell silent. "...all Keyblade Masters in the past had a heart to protect them. Riku was the first to fall, but Sora brought him back from the brink."

"There's no-one who can bring Sora back now."

This time, they both fell silent.

The statement was hauntingly true. Knowledgeable as they are, she a Sorceress, him the Superior that Nobodies acknowledged, they had absolutely no idea what to do about the 'Sora situation'. Keyblade Masters weren't meant to be renegade. They never were really meant to do anything except give their lives to wielding the Keyblade. Unfortunately, Sora was the first to break that rule.

And he paid the price.

----------------------

"I love _you_, Naminé!" he bellowed, gesturing to himself desperately. "Me! I love _you_, not Kairi! I love you not because I'm Sora and you're Kairi, I love you because I'm Roxas and you're _Naminé!_ Stop ignoring that fact!"

His shard of heart pounded painfully, and his mind seemed to be nothing but a whirl of disbelief and anger. Stormy blue eyes stared into clear cerulean ones.

Naminé stared at him, flaxen hair and blue plaid skirt fluttering in the afternoon breeze.

Roxas straightened up, waiting for her reply, not caring if people were now wondering what the hell he was talking about. All he cared about was breaking through that damn philosophy Naminé had created. He **loved** Naminé, because _he_ loved _her_. Period.

Cerulean eyes blinked slowly, and pale lips opened. "...are you _insane?_ People are staring at us, Roxas! Xemnas will kill you!" she whispered through gritted teeth.

"I don't care," he whispered back ferociously, volume of voice rising with every syllable. "I don't care what they think! I just want you to know that I love _you so stop yapping about me not being able to love!_"

She stared back at him once more, appearing to consider his words as she wrenched his hands from her shoulders with brute strength. He looked past her, and saw the crowd of students. Damn, they just had to fight when the bell had just rung dismissal. People had formed a circle around them...Roxas felt a kind of vindictive pleasure violating the Superior's strict rule about uncovering their...erm..._situation_ as Nobodies. He could hear them whispering amongst themselves, but he focused on the blonde girl before him, who had backed away a good five feet.

Naminé blinked, seemingly gathering anger.

"..._Shut up, Roxas!_" she roared back. "Stop thinking that you're off in your freakin' perfect world where we have everything! God! We're Nobodies! We _can't feel!_"

He was taken aback by her outburst; Naminé had never shown her _emotions_ like that before. Cerulean eyes blazed furiously in anger, and pale fingers clutched convulsively at thin air.

"You're not in love with me! You're in love with _the idea of falling in love!_" She added furiously.

Roxas opened his mouth, and closed it, at a loss of what to say. So _that_ was what she was harping on and on and _on_ about! "Didn't you think I already thought of that already, Naminé?" he said condescendingly, starting to walk around. Naminé walked in the opposite direction, and they circled each other like hawks.

"Ha," she narrowed her eyes. "As if a delusional Nobody like you would think about _that_."

"Why can't you just accept the fact that I love you?"

"Because I know you don't!"

He seethed and sprinted to her, grabbing her roughly by the arm as he forced her to face him. She yelled indignantly, face even paler with anger. "What the _hell_ do you think you're doing, Roxas!"

"I'm not stopping until I get through that thick head of yours that _I love you and you feel the same!_"

_Slap!_

The crowd gasped collectively, a loud 'whoa' rippling through the wind.

Roxas staggered back, holding a trembling hand up to his right cheek. His fingers came away slightly bloody; she had hit him with her Nobody strength. But her rejection and denial stung him even more.

"Shut the goddamn up! Stop lying to me!" She screamed, putting her hands over her ears.

"I am _NOT LYING!_" He bellowed once more, voice cracking. No-one laughed, however. Creator have mercy on them if they did. Naminé stared at him in disbelief as he slowly raised his gaze to meet hers, and he raised a hand.

"You dare hit a girl?" she choked out.

_Slap!_

This time, Naminé was the one who staggered back, holding a hand gingerly to a raw-red cheek, cerulean eyes wide and disbelieving. Roxas was seething, Roxas was furious, Roxas was just feeling pure _hatred_ right now. You always hate the ones you loved the most, it seemed.

"You're not a girl," he spat venomously. "Like you said, _you're a Nobody_."

Ignoring the tears starting to course their way down her pale-porcelain-white cheeks, he walked away without a second thought.

--------------------

"What?"

Kairi turned halfway, staring back at the direction of Destiny Academy. Somehow, she felt a faint surge of hatred that had nothing to do with her --- therefore, it must've been her Nobody's. Naminé was definitely furious.

"What's wrong?" Riku asked worriedly.

"Something's wrong, Riku," she murmured. "Something's definitely wrong. We need to go back to the Academy."

------------------

Naminé's footsteps pounded on the pavement. The crowd gave her a good ten feet's worth of space as she hurtled through, trying to scrub away the tears that overflowed down her cheeks. It hurt everytime her hand touched her sore cheek and jaw, but his words stung harder.

_You're not a girl, you're a Nobody._

She ignored the crowd and the loud whispers running through them. Hopefully they'll attribute the Nobody mentions to them being furious; chaining down the memories of a crowd this huge was not a pleasant thing to do.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't little miss Naminé."

She stopped short of ramming into a girl. A classmate. One of those who dubbed themselves Roxas' future girlfriends --- _fangirls_, Somebodies called them. Fanatics. This one had sleek black hair thrown carelessly over one shoulder...and a spear held securely in one beringed hand.

"Get out of my way," she said quietly, voice quavering with anger. However, the girl and her companions seemed to think it was of fear.

"Ah ah ah, Naminé. Good thing Roxas slapped you --- you rejected him, when all of us could plainly see that he was crazy over you. How could you be so heartless?"

"I hold only a shard of heart," Naminé ground out, throwing all the stupid rules of secrecy out of the window. "Don't make my day any worse."

The girls tittered among themselves, and weapons were suddenly drawn out. "Oh, you poor little girl," the ebony-haired one said sweetly. "You're about to learn what happens to people who hurt _our_ Roxas..."

"I'm saying only one more time. Don't make my day any more worse."

"Ooh, so scary. But as he said...you're only a nobody."

Naminé blinked, and clenched her hands at her sides. Anger rose up in her, anger and hatred and pain at being used, at being hurt, at being a _Nobody_ and not being able to _feel her own emotions_!

They raised their weapons. spear and sword and arrow and shortsword---

"So sorry to disappoint you," she said in a deadly whisper, "But I _am_ a Nobody. And I am going to show you what _this_ Nobody can do."

She swept out her hands, and summoned her Dusks --- all of those she could call. The girls shrieked in horror...but Naminé smiled in delight.

-----------------

Roxas walked away, internally struggling with himself. Half of him wanted to sprint back and apologize profusely to the girl, but half of him just wanted to kill her. All he did was _love_, was that such a crime?

The crowd whispered around him, but one glare made them all fall silent instantly.

How he hated them --- Somebodies ---

"---Oh, here he goes looking all surly!"

"Yeah, what a coward! Hitting a girl!"

Roxas raised his gaze, only to be me with the sight of a rather large group of boys, the same age as him, blocking his way. All were armed, and from the looks of it, were ready to beat him to a bloody pulp for slapping their precious Naminé. As if they owned her, anyway. Dream on. "What do you want?" he asked, words slurred together in anger.

"You on your knees and apologizing to Naminé," the auburn-haired boy in front said. Roxas vaguely recalled him as the guy who was hitting on Naminé the day Zexion came to teach. Rahnel, was it...?

"There's no way in hell I'm going to do that," he said firmly, walking towards them and attempting to shove his way through in a Keyblade-less fashion. The urge to summon his real weapons was overwhelming. "Back off, jerks."

Rahnel tutted. "Jerk? Who's the jerk? Not us." His companions nodded in agreement.

"I said, back _off_."

He drew out his weapon --- a metal-spiked mace that looked remotely threatening. Pssh. "Let's give him a good ass-kicking, boys."

They advanced, but Roxas stood still on the spot, eyes flashing with anger. "Don't make me hurt you."

"As if you could---"

His words died in his throat as Roxas, gritting his teeth, ignored all the warnings the Superior told him and summoned his Keyblades; Oathkeeper in his left, Oblivion in his right. Screw secrecy; Roxas was furious and right now, really pissed off.

Rahnel recovered quickly, and smirked. "Whoa," he sneered sarcastically. "Come _on_ Roxas, d'you really think we'd really fall for _that_ trick? Imitating Sora is just so _low_. Keyblades my a--"

"I am _not_ imitating Sora, damn it!" he yelled, brandishing his Keyblades. Electricity made of raw power crackled between them, and power surged through Roxas himself as he drew deeper on both light and darkness. A flicker of fear crossed Rahnel's face, but the boy quickly smoothed it into an unconvincing cocky grin. Roxas growled. "Nobody insults number Thirteen!"

"He's nuts," he heard someone say.

"Thirteen? As in Organization Thirteen?" Rahnel laughed. "Oh c'mon, you could at _least_ come up with a better story than _that_!"

Roxas snapped. First, he has to cover up for someone who in all honesty had killed the entire Organization. Next, Naminé had just rejected him, when they both knew that they loved each other. Now, this wiseguy laughs at Organization XIII, and laughs at _his_ credibility as a Keyblade Master! He was, as of now, officially fed up.

"Shut the hell up," he said coldly. "If you don't believe in the Organization, well, you sure are screwed right now."

He almost smiled in satisfaction as Rahnel yelled, jumping to avoid the Slayer that swiped at his feet. Roxas snapped his bare fingers and Slayers answered his call instantly. He distantly heard another uproar at the opposite side of the quad at roughly the same time, and out of the corner of his eye, he could see the Dusks dancing death. Naminé had lost control too.

He just _knew_ today wasn't his day.

-------------------

"Aaaah! Dona! Get out of here!"

Naminé watched in satisfaction as the Dusks wrought havoc in the quad --- they had cornered Roxas' 'fangirls' between Pavilion II and the Library, and were about to teach them a lesson they would never forget. Good thing remorse was something of a more submissive emotion right now. The girls screamed, and Naminé brought down a hand with a single command.

"Attack."

"Slayers! Intercept the Dusks!"

She whirled around and felt her eyes widen in disbelief. Roxas had just issued a command to stop _her_ own Dusks. He had just saved _them_! The huddled girls burst into tears with relief and happiness that the object of their affection had just _saved them_. Naminé was definitely not impressed.

Was she feeling...jealous?

_I give up_, she yelled mentally, narrowing her eyes at the smirking blonde boy. _Screw feeling. All I know is that I want to kill Roxas._

"What the _hell_, Roxas?"

He shrugged, the very epitome of calmness among the panicked students behind him. He snapped his fingers and the Slayer assembled behind him. She gathered her own Dusks in the same way, leaving an eerie silence in the air as the crowd watched them in both fear and awe.

Roxas tilted his head thoughtfully as he spun Oathkeeper in his left hand, and rested Oblivion easily on his right shoulder. "Why're you so mad at them, Naminé? Are you jealous?"

She stared at him murderously, biting her lip. She was _not_ going to take his bait, thank you very much.

"What? Cat got your tongue...? Or are just too blind to see that you _do_ feel?" Roxas smirked even wider. "What an irony. _Witch_."

"That's it!" she bellowed, tears blurring her vision again. How she hated him! She _hated_ him! "Prepare to _die_!"

Naminé screamed and summoned the most powerful Nobody she could: the Twilight Thorn. Roxas' stormy blue eyes widened in recognization; it was the Nobody he had fought long ago in the Keyblade's resting place: the Station of Calling. He was obviously stunned that she could summon it, judging from the way he gaped at the massive Nobody as it rose from a portal on the ground.

Some students screamed, and more than a few professors ran out of the building to see what the fuss was all about. No matter. Her Dusks were more than enough for them, for they could only be defeated completely by a Keyblade Master. And right now, Roxas was the only one in sight.

He blinked, and suddenly chuckled, to her amazement. "You are really something, Naminé."

She forced a smile as she spread her palms wide, summoning her wildcards --- and she _really_ did smile when Roxas gasped, staggering back.

"You haven't seen the best of it, Roxas," she breathed in a sickeningly sweet voice. "It does go without saying that I," she crossed her arms, "can wield any weapon I choose. After all...I _am_ a memory _witch_."

He yelled.

Naminé sprinted forward with the agility and the grace she had lifted from Riku's memories earlier, the speed of a Keyblade Master. Way to the Dawn and the Soul Eater glimmered in her hands --- both crafted from the fragile material called memories. But Naminé had learned that sometimes, memories are the most powerful weapons on could possibly have.

Roxas leapt into the air just in time to avoid a slash of the Way to the Dawn, and he flipped around in the air, landing behind her. She whirled around and shouted, "Dusks, Twilight Thorn! Take his Slayers down!"

He yelled for a counterattack, and the quadrangle burst once again into chaos.

She charged and jabbed both Keyblades in rapid succession, and each and every time Roxas managed to either block it or dodge. He brought down Oathkeeper and Naminé blocked it with the Soul Eater; they each pushed off each other and landed a good twenty feet apart.

"Nice one, Naminé," he cocked his head. "But sadly, I _am_ the only true Keyblade Master here."

"_Light!"_ Roxas crossed his Keyblades over his head and a circle of light traced itself around him, pouring out from the pavement. He released Oathkeeper and Oblivion, but both hovered inches from his palms, spinning rapidly and crackling with raw energy. He himself actually _floated_ a good foot above the ground, and two orbs of light followed his every movement.

Naminé then remembered that Sora's forms were only a manifestation of Roxas' power, and what she was seeing now was the Final Form. All he was missing now was the clothes and ---

_flash_

Great. Just great. Roxas grinned sadistically, a look that Naminé did not think he could pull off in a million years. Now she had a black-coated, Final-Formed Roxas.

Like it mattered, anyway. Probably, he did not remember that _she_ herself had touched the memories of Kairi, Riku, Sora, and even Roxas himself, when he was uploaded into Twilight Town. That's quite a lot of artillery she's got. She concentrated and reverted back to her original clothes: a pure white sundress --- signifying that she's innocent..._not_.

He stared at the demonstration of her own powers as she herself changed her memory-wrought Keyblades to Oathkeeper and Oblivion.

"Shall we dance, Roxas?" she called, summoning more of her Dusks.

He crossed and uncrossed his Keyblades, hovering in one place. "It would be my pleasure, Naminé." Roxas charged, and Naminé met him with her own Keyblades.

"_Be careful not to trip_," she whispered as they came face-to-face, laughing.

------------------

Kairi stared, speechless.

Riku had to pull her out of the way of Slayer's roaming razor-sharp fin. The Way to the Dawn coalesced in his hand, and both of them gazed at the chaos before them.

Nobodies danced among the crowd, Slayers against Dusks and a massive solitary Nobody with a blue scarf wound around what he presumed was a neck. The students and professors had their weapons out, panicked, but no Nobody actually attacked them --- they were too preoccupied with killing each other.

Riku realized the crowd had formed a rough barricade around something, and he strained to see what it was.

"C-Creator," Kairi gasped as Naminé leapt into view. She was looking downwards as if avoiding something, and she immediately spun around to block a follow-slash by Roxas.

Now, he was quite impressed by the feats Naminé was doing, but that was not what stunned him. He had absolutely no idea how the pale blonde Nobody was able to get hold of her _own_ Oathkeeper and Oblivion. He pulled Kairi closer to himself and shoved his way through the crowd (which automatically parted when they saw who was coming through), staring at their duel.

"Are those _Keyblades_?" she asked in an awed voice.

He shrugged, watching the two battle it out. Maybe Roxas and Naminé had just snapped.

Kairi clutched tightly to his arm, beryl eyes trained on both Nobodies. "What the heck is happening?"

"They finally got fed up with each other," he said shortly, and the auburn-haired girl shivered.

"Shouldn't we stop them? I mean, what are people going to say after this?" she pressed on. "They'll ask awkward questions about Roxas' Keyblades and Naminé and everything...Riku..."

Riku bit his lip. "No. It's up to them to decide." _As long as they keep Organization XIII under wraps, it's fine. It's going to be fine._

--------------------

"Hey. I just wanted to check up on --- I've already overused that."

"Larx! Just wanna know if you'd like those two Megalixirs I found the other day -- _wait a second where the heck am I going to get _two_ Megalixirs_?"

Axel stopped in the middle of the Corridors, berating himself mentally for not coming up with an excuse beforehand--it went without saying that Larxene would go berserk if he told her the real reason why he went to visit her.

He scratched his chin and shrugged, running a hand (and almost getting it stuck; Marluxia just did _not_ want to let go of the wide-toothed comb today) through his unruly red mane. Like it made any difference anyway; he shared the bedhead-hair trait with Roxas and Sora.

Speaking of the two...Roxas will certainly be surprised if he knew what Axel wanted to ask of him. As for Sora, Axel had not seen the brunet the whole day.

"Eh...what about...'Larxene, I'm about to profess my undying un-love for you.'..._nah_...sounds too forward," he said to himself as he stepped out of the expanse of the Corridors into Destiny Academy, in a secluded spot right behind Pavilion II.

His jaw dropped open as two Dusks strolled by him, with a Slayer slinking behind them. He whipped around the corner, not bothering to change into his commoner clothes. So what if the Spellcasting professor was wearing a black coat, anyway. Ears pricking up, he caught the sound of number Thirteen yelling something incoherent (to him, anyway) to an equally vehement memory witch.

Superior was _so_ going to kill them for this.

He narrowed his eyes nervously when he caught the unmistakable shape of Keyblades in their hands. Axel pushed his way into the crowd that had formed around them, ignoring the yells of 'Professor Axel!' and 'What _are_ they doing?'. Naminé was going to have to do one hell of a lot of chaining down after this.

"Hey you t--" he started, but his voice was quickly drowned by another shout.

"Dalmasca, Hikari! What do you think you're doing?"

He looked over his shoulder, and he could swear he felt his shard of heart stop beating. A waist-length, flaxen-haired woman in all white was watching the duel, stunned and panting, as if she had run a long distance. Her emerald eyes were wide and horrified. Beside her stood a lilac-haired man in all black, who observed the happenings with a slight trace of amusement etched on his face.

"Larxene!" He yelled, elbowing his way to her. "Throw kunais at them or something!"

"No!" she exclaimed, turning her gaze on him. "T...They'll be hurt!"

Axel stared at her, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. "Larx, your kunais _do_ hurt, but Nobodies can stand _so_ much more damage! You should know that!"

She stared at him.

Naminé yelled a Thundaga spell, but Roxas deflected it with a last-minute Reflectga, countering with a Firaga Strike of his own.

"Lar_xene_ if you don't do something they'll end up killing each other!" he yelled once again, panic creeping into his voice. He knew for a fact that if Roxas was furious he was a ruthless killer. Naminé, on the other hand, seemed dangerous because of the fact that she could use memories as her weapon --- Axel had never known that she could do that before. "Roxas! Naminé! Stop dueling; you've already revealed too much! The Superior will kill you!!"

Roxas looked over his shoulder at his best friend, glaring. "Like hell I care. I don't even exist anyway!"

A collective gasp.

"Have mercy on Naminé!" he pressed on, spreading out his palms. "Chaining down the memories of an entire quad will be hard work!"

"Like I said, I don't ca--"

"Oh, Axel," the blonde cut in as she slashed her Oblivion across where Roxas' neck would've been if he hadn't jumped away, "Who said I was going to chain their memories down?"

Axel blinked in disbelief. "What?"

She shrugged and ducked to avoid a Blizzaga. "I'm not chaining anybody's memory down. I'm tired of living in the dark like this; I'm tired of hearing Organization XIII becoming a joke. It's high time they learned that you guys aren't a my--_ahh!_"

Naminé gingerly took a few steps back, holding a pale hand to a six-inch slash across her side. It drew blood, but not deeply. Incredibly, she turned to Roxas and rolled her eyes. "What?" she asked, casting a Curaga. "Afraid of hitting a Nobody...?"

He paused for a split second before crossing his Keyblades and sending pillars of light after the girl, one of which she was nearly caught in. "Haha. You wish!"

Palming his forehead, he turned to number Twelve, who was currently eyeing the two with a knotted brow. "Larx, shut them up, maybe we can do some damage control..."

"B-but!"

"Now!"

Sighing deeply, she summoned no less than five kunais in each hand and chucked all of them, one after the other, at the two dueling Nobodies. All of them found their targets: two kunai lodged itself in Roxas' thigh and another three in his upper back, while four had lodged themselves into Naminé's stomach and back, making her double over and collapse onto the ground in surprise, one solitary kunai in her right shoulder. Roxas screamed and dropped into the pavement, using both Keyblades to hold him up as blood slowly dripped from the kunai wounds.

Some in the crowd swooned, and those who weren't unconscious was either staring at the two blondes, transfixed, or staring at _them_ themselves in mixed horror and awe.

"What the _heck_, Arlene?" Roxas yelled in disbelief as he jerked out the kunai from his thigh, wincing in pain.

Axel stared at the blonde woman, and a reason of why she was in all white suddenly came to him. Zexion bit his lip, and Axel suddenly had the horrible feeling of not knowing something that he was supposed to know. "What?" he asked loudly as he took a step towards them, panic definitely coursing through his veins.

"Axel..." the blonde said faintly. "I'm not Larxene...My name is Arlene."

The world stopped moving.

Axel stared at her, gaze unblinking, disbelieving.

"B-but...Y-you're number Twelve, Larxene!" he choked out. "You...you..." he trailed off, ignoring Kairi's vehement exclamation of 'What _is_ Axel doing here?!', mind slowly going numb. Arlene's gaze softened, and she bit her lip, tears shimmering at the edge of her eyes.

"I, too..." Zexion said quietly, and Axel turned and gazed blankly at him, knowing what he was going to say. "Zexion, number Six, is gone."

"Axel..." he heard Roxas say pleadingly in the distance, but right now, everything seemed to be a blurry haze of confusion, Naminé pulling out a kunai from her stomach with a sickening squelch, Riku trying to calm a hysterical Kairi down, students watching in awe and disbelief, Zexion--no, Ienzo now, comforting a silently-crying Arlene.

He was too late.

That hurt. Very much.

It took all of his self-control not to set the entire Academy on fire right now.

Swiping at his eyes, he summoned a portal soundlessly, intending to lock himself in his room until...well...until he was over it. Either that, or burn the Castle down. It seemed equally plausible.

"Axel!"

A delicate hand placed itself on his shoulder, and he looked back into Arlene's tear-streaked face. He didn't have the willpower to speak right now, so he just tilted his head in acknowledgement.

She looked down. "...Larxene loves you. I just wanted to let you know that she really does; she's just too scared to admit it to you."

_She...loved me?_

"Even if you were the one who betrayed her in Castle Oblivion, she's still grateful for you and your company. You do make her feel that she has her own heart."

_that's my line..._

"I'm so sorry!" Arlene burst out, before whirling around and running into Ienzo's embrace. The lilac-haired man met his gaze for a second, before bowing his head.

Nodding hollowly, all thoughts of Keyblades and such gone from his head, Axel portalled out.

-----------------

Naminé watched as Axel portalled out with an expression on his face that she couldn't quite describe. It was quite a pitiful sight to see a depressed number Eight.

Wincing, she propped herself up into a sitting position and dismissed her memory-wrought Keyblades. She looked up just in time to see Arlene and Ienzo portal out. Arlene or Larxene, that woman sure knew how to drive a kunai deep. Wrenching the kunai free from her stomach, she staggered to her feet, blood staining her dress a very nice shade of crimson. Her Dusks and the Twilight Thorn was still squaring off the Slayers Roxas had summoned. Speaking of the boy (in very loathsome terms), he was still crouched on the pavement, seemingly finding out a way how to get the kunai out of his shoulder without tearing it _too _open. She watched it with _great_ amusement --- it served him right.

Oh, how she hated him right now. Her fingers curled themselves into fists as soon as the thought occured.

"Naminé...!" Riku's voice cried out helplessly, and she tiredly swung her gaze in their direction. The silver-haired Wielder was trying to calm a furious Kairi down. "Please!"

"It was _Axel_, Riku!" the redhead yelled angrily, trying to wrench herself free of his grip. To do what, Naminé had no idea, nor did she care. After all, she _was_ only her Nobody.

_Nobody..._

Anger bubbled up in her. If it wasn't for Kairi, she didn't have to live this half-life she was existing; maybe she didn't have to experience the horrible emptiness and the feelings of false love and the terrible feeling of rejecting and hurting and --

"Naminé! Chain her memories down!" Riku yelled.

"_Enough!"_ she bellowed, breathing in great shallow gasps now. "I am not a tool, Riku! You can't just tell me to chain down memories! I don't want to be used anymore! _I don't want to be just her shadow anymore!"_ she screamed, pointing an accusing finger at her Other.

Naminé snapped, and the chains she had placed on both the platinum-haired Wielder and the Princess of heart fell.

She couldn't care less.

An eerie silence filled the quadrangle as a wide-eyed Kairi fell silent. Her blank look soon turned into horror in roughly the same time as Riku blanched. Presumably they were both remembering the incident at Twilight Town. Serves them right!She was tired of hiding the fact that she was a Nobody, that other Nobodies existed! They were already deprived of the right to live, but the right to mingle with Somebodies? The only difference was their _hearts_! "I will not be used anymore."

"Naminé..." Kairi trailed off, tears forming at the edge of her eyes.

Not even sparing Roxas another glance, she portalled out.

------------------

"...d-did you see what just happened?"

"They summoned all those Nobodies!"

"So it's true...Organization XIII is true!," One student said hysterically. "And we have three of them for professors! C-creator! _Three!_"

"Wasn't that a portal of darkness just now?" another asked. "...Sora wasn't joking after all..."

Kairi listened, words meaningless to her as she watched her Nobody portal out. The chains on her memory had fallen, and all that she could remember was that last night, she saw Sora. Someone who looked like Sora. Her head spun impossibly as the memory of seeing the note came back to her.

Sora...

She turned to Riku, but the platinum-haired Wielder was already helping Roxas up and casting curative spells. She ran soundlessly next to him. " --- you thinking! Now everyone will know for sure Sora resurrected Organization XIII," he said in what he obviously thought was a quiet voice. "Oh, how Kairi will react..."

She stood, frozen in the spot. From that tone of voice, Riku wasn't even surprised. He was expecting this..."Riku?"

He turned his head to stare at her, stunned. All the color drained from his face. "K-Kai, that wasn't what I..."

"_You knew_?" she demanded shrilly. "_You knew and you didn't tell me?_"

"I didn't think it was necessary to let you worry about something ---"

"_Worry! Riku,"_ she paused for breath, gasping, "You just said Sora ---"

"Roxas told me he's okay," Riku cut in quickly, heaving the blonde up as he tried to extract another kunai from his back. "Right...?"

The blonde boy blinked, and stood, free of Riku's support. He gazed at them, and his stormy blue eyes narrowed. She could feel the anger radiate from him. "Oh, suuuure. Sora's doing just fine," he said sarcastically.

"You had contact with---"

"Oh for crying out loud!" he yelled. "He tried to _kill_ me, that's what! Stupid Sora! Giving me a shard of his heart then trying to take it back by _force_!"

Riku straightened up beside her. "Shard of heart...?" he said slowly.

Kairi stared at Roxas as if she had never seen him before. What the _heck_ was he talking about?

"That's it. I am _sick_ and _tired_ of covering up for some_body_ who's trying to kill me!" number Thirteen suddenly burst out, whipping a small black notebook from his coat pocket. "You two don't have _any_ idea what Sora's been through! You didn't even _try_ to find out why he wasn't coming back for _so damn long!_"

He walked over to her in one smooth movement and pressed the notebook into her hands. "Having a heart and breaking someone else's! Kairi, Riku, you two betrayed Sora, not the other way around. You Somebodies make me _sick_."

Roxas turned around, and vanished in a portal of darkness.

------------------

Sora, once again, panicked.

Of all the places...he should've known _this_ was the spot that he would be attracted to.

He's so screwed.

The call of Kingdom Hearts was almost too much to bear. Antiform was giggling madly in his head. And Sora suddenly remembered...the reason why he felt it so much was that he hadn't even sealed it, all the times he had been here.

Gritting his teeth, he summoned the Reverse Keyblade. Darkness or not, it was still a Keyblade, and he sure hoped it would still be able to seal.

Why, of all the places...?

Stepping back, he prepared to seal Destiny Island's Keyhole. He glanced once at the chalk-painted walls; at the pictures; at the paopu fruit exchange between a chalk Sora and a chalk Kairi.

Only in chalk.

Only in chalk.

"I hate this."

His voice echoed with words that have been already said in this cave, the Secret Place. Where Kairi shattered his heart. Where it all started.

_Wow, buddyboy. Such emo things to think about._

"Shut up," he groaned as he directed his Keyblade at the Door To Darkness.

------------------

Trembling, she opened the blood-stained notebook with pale and clammy hands, afraid of what was within, even if she had no idea what --- or _whose_ it was.

Precise handwriting graced the first page.

_Walking this road,_

_Without you,_

_To remake forgotten promises and meet you at road's end._

_Faded Memories,_

_Reconstucted Memories,_

_A dream - a dream of you,_

_In a world without you._

_A scattered dream that's like a far-off memory._

_A far-off memory that's like a scattered dream._

_I want to line the pieces up --_

_yours and mine._

_This journal is the property of Sir Sora Hikari, Keyblade Wielder._

_If you're reading this without my consent, it means you broke that seal that only a Keyblade Master could break. That means you, Roxas. You know what I can do._

She turned the page to the very first entry, which was mercifully free of bloodstains.

_November 03, 2083 A.E_

_12:34 AM_

_Hi. I've started to keep a journal, obviously. _

_Well, where do I begin..._

_There's the note. I don't need to expain _that

_So there I was in Twilight Town after finding the Keyhole. Roxas annoyed me so much I went berserk and opened Kingdom Hearts, bringing Organization XIII back. Stupidly enough, I got locked inside after._

_It's no fun being locked in Kingdom Hearts. Poor Riku, that must've been what he felt._

_So then I get outta there because I get dumped in the ocean...right in front of Destiny Islands. I found out Roxas and Naminé were going to the Academy too. _

_Uhm. So for short, I got my heart shattered that night._

_...and she doesn't even care, since I've put on my happy face. I've got to stop doing this, but I hate seeing her sad. It was my fault anyway..._

_Roxas and Naminé haven't told them anything, except for Riku. But..._

_Whatever._

_I'm going to sleep._

_'Night._

"He...he got _locked_ inside Kingdom Hearts and brought back the Organization and you knew and you didn't tell me?" Kairi asked in the most dangerous voice she could manage. Riku actually choked on his words.

"It was for yours and Sora's sake--"

"_Heartless!_" somebody screamed, and sure enough, Neoshadows were storming the quadrangle, and once again it burst into chaos. The remaining Nobodies clashed against them, the Twilight Thorn devastating Heartless ranks. However, she didn't even care. She was much too stunned to do that.

"For _Sora's sake!_" she said incredously. "Are you _insane_?"

"Kairi, please..."

"I...I can't believe this, Riku! You didn't tell me because you didn't want me to worry about Sora! You just wanted me to think about _you!_" she yelled shrilly, tears overflowing.

He took a step back, stung. A hurt look twisted his face.

She spun on her heels and ran away, Sora's journal clutched tight in her arms.

---------------

"Oh, _hell_ no."

Sora checked his other pocket.

"None here, either."

He groaned and crouched down, head in his hands. He could feel the presence of Heartless nearby; probably ten platoons or such. Not that it mattered; all Sora felt now was the excruciating craving that signalled bloodlust. It had gone, but now it was back with a vengeance.

Antiform laughed. _Stupid._

He dismissed his Keyblade, checking himself all over again in desperation.

"Greeat. I forgot to bring a blood pack," he muttered. If he didn't get blood right _now_, Antiform would break free. "I think I have to portal back over to the Castle and get another one."

Hoping he didn't meet anybody in the Corridors, for he was sure he wouldn't be able to control himself and he'd attack whoever it was, he summoned a portal back to his room.

_eh?_

"Footsteps," he muttered quietly. Sora immediately dismissed the portal and sprinted to the shadows, not thinking, as a person suddenly burst into the Secret Place.

Oh _God_, no. No. Not now.

A panting Kairi collapsed on her knees, sobbing.

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SO SORRY FOR UPDATING SO LATE.

Read and review. Thank you. Flamers can go ahead.

"Roxas, Naminé, you idiots


	27. Over the Edge

**A/N: **It's a sort of a breather. Y'know. BUT IT HAS A PLOT. Yeppers.

**Disclaimer: **It'd be called a 'claimer' if I own KH, right?

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------------------------

**XXVII: O**ve**r_ t_**_h**e**_E d g **e**

------------------------

"...what if we gather all the Princesses again?" Rinoa suggested, bouncing slightly on her heels, wings faded away now.

Xemnas shook his head, as he had been doing for almost the whole afternoon. "Kairi's touch will still be tainted. We'd just end up making it worse."

She nodded absently as she got to her feet and started pacing. "Well, we have to find a way, before it's too la--o_kay_."

Strands of darkness rose up from the carpeted floor on the ebony-haired girl's right side, and weaved with each other to form a portal. A hooded figure stepped out.

"Superior," Saïx said hurriedly, lowering his hood. His tawny yellow eyes flickered to Rinoa, and she stared stonily back with her own sorceress-made amber ones. He did not dwell on her, however. The berserker turned to Xemnas. "Axel has burnt down tower three of the Castle."

Xemnas blinked. "The whole tower?"

He nodded. "Yes. We can't get a coherent sentence out of him, and as I left, Axel was going for burning the Left wing. We need help. Eight has never been this violent before."

"If we must, then," Xemnas said shortly. He would like to come back to a whole Castle, as much as possible. He followed number Seven through the portal and into the Addled Impasse. To his surprise, Rinoa had followed them.

"Sorceress Ri--"

"I've always wanted to visit this place," she mused, peering out of the glass windows at the moon that was Kingdom Hearts. "Just didn't know where to get off at the Corridors, though. You're the first beings to come across this World. Of course," she twittered. "It _is_ the World That Never _Was_."

If that was a joke, Xemnas could not see the humor in it. Sighing, he stepped out into the Proof of Existence.

_Crash._

"_Axel! Calm down already!_"

They hurried into the direction of the shouting and the smell of fire, which was, disturbingly, the Hall of Empty Melodies.

Sure enough, Axel was in the middle of a ring of fire, his chakrams out and leaping high with white-hot fire. A panting number Eleven portalled up to them and crouched to catch his breath.

"S-Superior," he managed to choke out. "Saïx...and whoever you are. He's unstoppable."

"Don't say that--"

"Oh, pssh," Rinoa muttered, vaulting herself over the balcony and landing smoothly on the fire-infested ground below. She held out her hands; blue light coalesced, filled her palms and--

"No!" Marluxia yelled, not even bothering to portal down. Instead the brunet vaulted over just like she did and landed beside the sorceress. "Don't cast any kind of Ice or Water magic; he always counters with a stronger spell!"

Xemnas walked to the edge of the Hall's balcony, Saïx beside him, watching the two try and subdue Axel.

"Who's she?" the berserker asked morosely.

"A sorceress. Rinoa Heartilly."

"...hm. Interesting."

"Very much so," Xemnas agreed, as Rinoa shot number Eleven a glare.

"You have _no_ idea what I can do, do you?" she asked shrilly as wings made of pure power sprouted out of her back. Saïx flinched, and Marluxia yelled, staggering back.

"Rinoa!" Axel said disbelievingly, as if noticing her for the first time. "What the _heck_ are you doing here?"

"What are _you _doing?" she shot back. "Burning down your home won't bring them back! Wasting your strength like this won't bring _her_ back!"

"What on _earth_ are you talking about?" Marluxia asked, bewildered. He had frozen in the act of swinging his scythe across the wall of flames, intending to clear a way.

"_I don't care!_" Axel roared, spinning both chakrams and sending pillars of fire blazing up from the marble floor.

Another portal opened behind them, and Xemnas had only time to catch a blur of golden hair before something hurtled past him and clutched convulsively at the railing.

"Axel! Don't do this!" she cried, shaking her head.

"Arlene! Be careful!" a lilac-haired man warned as he dismissed the portal from which they came from.

The din below died down in no less than five seconds, and the three of them, Axel, Marluxia, and Rinoa, portalled up into the balcony. Saïx slapped a hand to his forehead in exasperation. However, the shard of heart seemed to be beating up somewhere in the general region of Xemnas' throat.

"Don't be stupid," she said softly to Axel, but directing her gaze at the floor.

"What _is_ this?" Marluxia exclaimed. "Larxene, why the hell are you wearing white? And...and _why_ did Zexion just call you Arlene?" Panic definitely tinged his voice now.

"I think we owe them an explanation," the blue-haired man said tiredly as Larxene walked to his side and took his hand. "We--"

Rinoa sighed. "Reverted. Right, Ienzo?"

"Miss Rinoa...yes." The former laboratory assistant looked slightly discomfited by the fact that he was speaking to a sorceress.

"I told you, Arlene," she continued. "You'd get him someday."

Arlene blushed as Ienzo shot her a puzzled look. "Yes, you were right."

Marluxia made a choking sound. He was now leaning on the railing and it was the only thing that was keeping him on his feet. "L-Larx..."

"She's safe," Arlene assured him. "Just...gone."

Still another portal opened, this time right behind a stoic-faced Axel, revealing a white-faced Luxord, all color drained from an already pale face. "Superior, Sora is nowhere to be seen. We've searched the entire World, but none of the Nobodies had seen him."

Xemnas felt a raging headache coming on. It was one of the things he had not missed when he was a Nobody; headaches were something of a natural occurance to Somebodies that he was grateful he could not feel before. But now...he decided that Sora gone was the least of his problems, seeing that numbers Six and Twelve were both gone.

-----------------------

Panting, running, and sobbing at the same time, Kairi stumbled into the Secret Place. It was the only place where she could find sanctuary now. Everything seemed to whirl around her. Roxas' words stung her deeply.

_Kairi, Riku, you two betrayed Sora, not the other way around. You Somebodies make me sick._

She wanted to throw up. Something was wrong. The bloodstains on Sora's journal were testament to that. And what did Roxas mean by he's tired of covering up for somebody who wants to kill him? Surely that wasn't Sora.

...but still.

Kairi staggered over in front of the drawing etched in the stone, the drawing that was most important to her in this cave. Two children. Two paopu fruit. Two hearts -- _Giving me a shard of his heart and...!_

What did he mean, shard of heart?

She's heard of a heart breaking, but she had never known it to break _literally_.

Oh God, what had she done?

----------------------

_You are one screwed kidd-o._

Sora twitched in the shadows, desperately trying to keep his bloodlust at bay enough for him to be able to concentrate enough and portal out. Sadly, he was long past the point of tolerance.

Shaking, he drew a fingernail of his left hand across his right wrist, and blood blossomed from the thin line. He put it up to his mouth but he soon found out it was not doing anything.

He needed _somebody_ else's _fresh_ blood.

And right now, the person nearest to him was Kairi.

_Lemme take over, buddyboy. Don'tcha want to see her suffer like you did?_

"No," he said through gritted teeth.

Somehow, a few minutes ago, Roxas had snapped. And his control together with it. Now it was purely Sora's will who fought with Antiform. Sora would've easily won if his will was paired together with his even stronger heart, but he had no heart to speak of now.

"...I am so screwed," he agreed, gasping and falling to his knees. Kairi whipped around.

"K-kai," he said weakly, darkness clouding his vision. "R-run...!"

The last thing he saw was her stunned and stunning beryl eyes.

-----------------------

A bloodcurdling scream echoed through the still night air of their island.

Panicking, Riku didn't bother to tie his boat to the dock. Instead, he sprinted towards the sound, towards the Secret Place. That was where he knew Kairi would instinctively go.

Her words stung him deeply, but he knew, somewhere at the back of his mind, it was true. He was blinded by his love for Kairi; he was blinded by the need for competition between him and his best friend.

_What had happened to Sora? _he asked himself as he ran, staring and not really seeing the grains of sand in the moonlight.

"What the!" he yelled, swinging his head up to gaze at the sky.

Instead of the full moon, Kingdom Hearts glowed above him, bright and pulsing and seemingly _angry_. Shooting stars rained down all around the island, disappearing into the horizon.

It was terrifyingly surreal.

Summoning his Way to the Dawn, Riku ran on.

----------------------

"Okay, let's not get started on the wrong foot here."

Kairi stared. She was positive she had seen a sky-blue eye right before darkness rose up and revealed this...this _thing_. Which was now currently telling her they shouldn't be starting on the wrong foot. Uhm. Was this weird or what?

It coughed its throat and, from the sound, dusted itself off. "Princess. Kairi. Dalmasca. Leonhart, ehem. I am Sora dot Antiform. Antiform for short. Or Darkie, like buddyboy always says when he isn't mad."

_What the hell?_

"Huh?" she managed to stammer, backing away into the rock and placing her hands on it.

"I'm a he, okay?" Antiform said thoughtfully. "'cause buddyboy's well...a _boy_, duh."

"W-what _are_ you...?" she asked in a shrill voice as she stared at it...for it was only the yellow-Heartless eyes she could see; the shadows were ebony black here.

"I just told you. I'm buddyboy's Heartless..."

"H-how--"

"So many questions, Princess! Less talk, more heart!" he yelled, and Kairi managed to run in time to avoid what looked like a claw. It slashed right down the chalk drawing, halving it between her and Sora. "Wow. Look. Buddyboy, you draw like a preschooler. Now with my addition, it looks like your life story."

_Who is he talking to?_ Kairi thought, panicking.

"...yep, you're torn apart. Hah." The eyes moved towards her, and a claw slashed out at her again. Screaming, Kairi ran outside the cave, and collapsed backwards on the moonlit sand. She felt him following her, and she screamed again.

_The moon was never this bright..._

Her gaze swung upwards, and it took all of her willpower not to scream once more. Instead of the moon, the colossal shape of Kingdom Hearts shone down, and meteorites traced their fiery paths across the sky.

"Nice one," the voice said approvingly as he walked into the moonlight of Kingdom Hearts. "Key broken, Kingdom broken. I wonder how many Worlds will fall..."

This time, Kairi screamed. Loudly. The figure of Sora walked out, spiky hair and baggy pants and thin strong limbs -- but drenched in black. Black trailed from his clawed hands, and he left rapidly-fading footprints in the sand.

"Toldja, Princess," Antiform laughed. "I'm Sora's heartless. His dark side. Literally."

"Kairi!"

She scrambled to her feet, and backed away in the direction Riku was coming from. He called out her name again, and she could've burst into tears with relief. "R-Riku..."

"Let me take care of this," he said firmly. He gave her a weak smile and charged at Antiform.

--------------------------

Riku charged at Antiform, but he dodged it easily with Sora's agility. It hit him like a sixteen-wheeler truck. He was attacking his best friend. He was attacking _Sora_.

"Yanno, you're a pretty heartless one yourself, pretty boy," he laughed as he flipped over and landed nimbly on the sand.

"Shut up!"

Riku sent a Dark Firaga at the ebony-black figure, but Antiform deflected it right back, laughing even more. He charged at him again, yelling. "Shut u--" he stopped short when he recognized the weapon Antiform was holding.

Silver handle, golden body...the Reverse Keyblade!

"What the...!"

Kairi ran to his side and clutched tightly to his arm. "Riku, what's wrong?" she asked worriedly. Probably at the horrified expression on his face right now.

"That's...that's King Mickey's Keyblade!" he choked out. "You...you were the one who attacked the King!"

Antiform twirled the keyblade around and let it rest on his shoulder, tapping it in a eerie resemblance to Sora. "You're a bright one, " he said sarcastically. "But it really was buddyboy--"

He and Kairi exchanged bewildered glances.

"--geez," Antiform added, scratching his head. "Buddy_boy_? Sora? Ring a bell?"

"B-but why would Sora attack King Mickey?" Riku demanded, although he suspected it was because of the note the King sent. But Sora would never attack King Mickey...

He giggled in reply and portalled onto their island within the island, sitting on the paopu tree where they had sat on an eternity ago, thinking about new worlds and then, recieving the note. The note that changed everything. "Are you sure you wanna know, pretty boy?" he called out, Reverse Keyblade shining in the darkness. "Might be too sensitive for the Princess' ears."

This time Kairi was the one who dragged Riku across the beach and up into the bridge that connected the island, but no closer. Her hands were as cold as ice, and so was her voice. "Explain."

"It's your funeral, anyway," Antiform cocked his head, and grinned. "So. Lemme start at the...well..._start_."

-----------------------

"So. Buddyboy got King Mick-o's note. You know already know that," he started, making himself comfortable on the tree trunk. "He then went off in search of Twilight Town's Keyhole. But my control, what was his name again...oh. Yep. Roxas. Well, the guy pissed Sora off, so buddyboy then goes berserk and opens Kingdom Hearts. He brings back Org XIII and frees them. The only good thing that came out of that was that Roxas' control slipped...or is that a bad thing."

Kairi urged him to continue, ignoring the sight of Antiform cleaning his fingernails.

"Buddyboy gets locked in Kingdom Hearts, and _that_ is something I'd never forget. Right, pretty boy? Getting locked in there..."

Riku blanched.

"...but Sora actually got out, 'course, he's the Key. But talk about getting out of the frying pan and into the fire!" he laughed, holding up his left hand to the moonlight, apparently examining it for hangnails. "Buddyboy goes to the ball, and _bang_! Shattered heart coming right up!"

"D-don't say that," she said weakly. "I didn't _shatter_---"

"Oh." Antiform paused, and furrowed his eyebrows. "Sorry. You shattered his heart much later. I think that night ya just broke it."

"What the--"

"You see, Princess, when you break a Keyblade Wielder's heart, you break it _literally_. That's one of the few weaknesses of a Master. And in buddyboy's case, well..." he held up four fingers. "On All Hallow's Eve you broke his heart into four pieces. In my opinion, that's pretty much enough. But _nooooo_, she's not satisfied with it--"

"He left me!" Kairi yelled. "He chose his duty over me!"

"If you were in his place, what would _you_ choose, Princess? One person, or the realm of light?" Antiform said slyly.

She fell silent.

"Anyway, moving on. Remember the beach thing where you and that blonde chick had a catfight? Well, when you said you'd rather _forget_ buddyboy," he held up three fingers. "Three of the original pieces broke further into four shards. So three times four is twelve, plus the remaining original piece...that makes thirteen. And _that_ is called a shattered heart."

She fell to her knees. "T-thirteen shards?" she stammered. "But...but that's..."

"That's not even half of it," he chuckled, now holding up his right hand. "The Knighting's the best part. King Mick-o's guilty, but you, Princess, are guilty too. What about you, pretty boy? Why didn'tcha say something about the sword?"

Kairi narrowed her eyes and turned to Riku, who scowled. "I thought it was something else."

"Pretty _boy_, the Dark Keyblade is _never_ something else."

"The sword! The one King Mickey made all seven Princesses touch!" Kairi realized. "It's just to make sure the knight swears fealty to the Kingdom, Antiform."

"Nuh-uh," he shook his head. "That ain't no sword; it's the Dark Keyblade, hidden by magic."

"The Keyblade made from--"

"Yeppers," he nodded this time. "And it binds you to the Light."

Riku choked. "Then why the hell am I still alive?"

"'cause you ain't letting me finish!" Antiform exclaimed, scowling. "Princess' touch here saved both your lives. Since she felt extreme hatred for Sora at that time, her touch twisted the light of the six other Princesses and turned it into darkness. Really, really dark darkness. So when it touched ya, pretty boy, it did no nothing. Buddyboy, however...when the Keyblade tried to bind him to the Light, he struggled. He asked me for help... And yeah, he set me free by doing that."

"Oh Creator," Kairi breathed. Riku knelt down beside her.

"It's gonna get better! So pretty boy punches buddyboy after the Knighting thing. I just want you to know," he grinned, white teeth shining in the pitch-black of his face, "The guy who you thought insulted Princess? That wasn't Sora. That was me."

"You...you were the one who said that?" the platinum-haired Wielder asked weakly. "Sora...he really didn't?"

"Nope. I hafta give credit to you, 'cause of you, Sora panicked. 'cause Sora panicked, he lost. To me." He sighed happily. "I almost killed him that night."

"You _what_?" Kairi screamed.

"I. Almost. Killed. Buddyboy," Antiform repeated. "Yanno, instead of just wondering where the hell buddyboy was, you should've went and searched for him. Such a waste. So anyway. I was _thisclose_ to getting all thirteen shards of buddyboy's heart--and I tell you, Princess, you shattered his heart good--when King Mick-o suddenly gets into the scene with that silver-haired guy. Like yours, pretty boy. Only shinier."

"Silver?"

"Whatever," Antiform said. "I wanna get to the good part. So to get away from those two idiots I fall back into Sora. Then the silvery-haired guy...I think something like Xemnas...brings buddyboy to their castle, whatever. And this is the best part!"

Kairi was almost too afraid to hear what it was.

"Sora...buddyboy...killed himself," he whispered conspiratorically.

Silence hung in the air, during which Antiform had taken to sharpening his nails on the edge of the Reverse Keyblade.

_skreek_

_skreek_

_skreeek_

"Would you _please_ stop doing that?" Riku said irritably.

"Sorry, pretty boy."

_skreeeeeeeeeeeeek_

"You're doing that to annoy me."

_skreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeek_

"He killed himself?" Kairi whispered fearfully, ignoring the scowl now pasted on Riku's face. "Sora...he's dead?"

"Yeppers!" Antiform said cheerfully. "Lifeless as a squished cockroach. The blood you saw on King Mick? That's Sora's blood. He just didn't want you people to know, 'cause that'll lead to the Dark Keyblade, and the Dark Keyblade is forbidden magic."

"King Mickey lied?" Riku bit his lip. "How do I know you're telling the truth?"

" 'cause! Where else would the blood on him come from? Heartless weep blood, not shed blood." As far as Kairi could see, Antiform rolled his eyes.

She wanted to throw up, at this point. Sora died. Sora _dead_. But...who was the one she saw at the Mansion? She looked up, and found Antiform observing her. He grinned and made a dismissive motion with his hand.

"Something went wrong, however. Buddyboy used the Dark Keyblade to stab himself, so instead of dying like every Somebody does, it's as if a Heartless took his heart. _But_ a new Nobody can't be created 'cause he's already got Roxie. So somewhere in the middle of the mess Sora turns half-Heartless, half-Nobody. His shards of heart got spread out into Org XIII, 'cause it's their castle! Good thing you split it into exactly thirteen."

Silence.

"And yeah, Roxie split his shard with the blonde chick. Just so you know."

Silence.

Antiform jumped off the tree and started pacing, tapping his Keyblade on his shoulder. "The guy who attacked your school's quad and the King? That was Sora. Yep, he did that of his own free will. I mean, c'mon, who wouldn't? Find your bestfriend dating your girl? Like hell yeah, kill 'em."

"But the students who were taken by the Heartless!" She stammered, getting to her own feet. "Those...those were my _friends!_"

"So?" Antiform grinned.

"You cold-hearted _murderer!" _she screamed, lunging blindly at him. Hatred lent her strength. Tears clouded her vision as she slapped him hard in the face. "I _hate_ you!"

"Kairi, _no_!" she heard Riku yell, and she looked back indignantly.

"What, Riku?" Kairi yelled shrilly. "King Mickey! All those students! So--"

Something in his pallid gaze made her look back to the face she had slapped.

_Oh God, no!_

"K-K--" Sora stammered, staggering backwards into the paopu tree. "K-Kairi..."

Beside him, Antiform was whistling with his fingers laced behind his head.

"J-Just when I fought him and actually _won_, Kairi," the brunet said brokenly, holding a pale hand to his left cheek. Both sky-blue eyes reflected hurt. "You...you..."

"It wasn't you, Sora!" she insisted, wringing her hands. Her heart pounded painfully as a wide-eyed, disbelieving Sora followed her every move. "It was Antiform! I hate Anti--"

"Nuh-uh, you don't, Princess," Antiform snickered. "I told ya, it was Sora who sent the Heartless after the quad. So yep. It _is_ him that you hate. Even if ya hate me, I'm still Sora, whatever you say."

"I didn't--" she backed away right into Riku, who clutched her shoulder painfully. Sora fell to his knees in front of the paopu tree and screamed.

"_I...I thought you would understand...how...how betrayal feels..."_ the brunet sobbed, gasping. "_Of all the people, Kairi! What did I do to deserve this?"_

"Buck up, buddyboy." Antiform whispered urgently, taking Sora's arm and placing it around his shoulders as her helped the Wielder to stand up. Kairi did not miss the knowing smirk Antiform shot her. He had probably let Sora take over just when she had burst out; just in time to recieve the brunt of her rage. "Sora...come on. Stop it."

"Don't listen to him, Sora!" Riku yelled, but it was too late.

"Fine," he said coldly, head bowed as he clung even heavier to Antiform. "I see how it is."

"Yanno, Princess," Antiform tilted his head thoughtfully. "You give a whole new meaning to the word 'heartless'."

And with one last grin, Antiform merged into Sora. Swirling blackness stained the left half of the brunet's exposed skin, and Kairi watched, stunned, as his left eye swirled with sickly yellow, the white and the sky-blue vanishing completely. His left hand was completely black in a matter of seconds, and sharp claws sparkled in the light of Kingdom Hearts. Cinnamon spikes turned ebony and darkness crept across his face, tainting the left half black. The Dark Keyblade flashed to life in his hands.

"Kairi..." Riku whispered in a horrified voice. "What have you done?"

"C'mon," Sora beckoned, narrowing his eyes. "Let's have another..._chat_."

He charged.

She suddenly felt Riku pull her backwards, and they fell into the Corridors. The last thing she saw before the portal closed was a snarling Sora, headed right for them.

"Riku!" she whined. "Why'd you---"

"That...that's not the Sora we knew, Kairi," he said urgently, leading her along the blankness of the infinite Corridors of darkness. "Didn't you feel it?"

"That's Sora, Riku! We can't just--"

"Did you see Kingdom Hearts?" he pressed on. "Sora must've snapped, and Kingdom Hearts is breaking apart. Darkness is breaking free! I can't...I still don't know if he...if I can defeat him!"

"So where are we going?"

"To the place where we can get answers."

Riku held his hand up in front of him and another portal opened. Kairi shut her eyes and stepped through with him, into the threshold of Disney Castle.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CLIFFIE.

Program to make. Sorry.

WILL KING MICKEY STOP PRETENDING THAT EVERYTHING'S HUNKY-DORY?

WILL SORA _EVER_ FORGIVE KAIRI?

and more importantly...WILL ANTIFORM EVER GET RID OF HIS FASCINATION WITH HIS OWN FINGERNAILS?

uhm.

Stay tuned.


	28. The Longest Night of Her Life

**A/N: **This is the calm before the storm. All the players come together. Yeppers.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Kingdom Hearts, this'd be KHIII, and I wouldn't be posting this on the 'net.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

----------------------

**XXVIII: T**_h_**e _Lo_**_ng_**e**st **Ni**_gh**t**_** of Her **_Life_

----------------------

Axel walked down the white hall, teal eyes glued to the white floor.

_Twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight._

He stopped, and turned to his right. Sure enough, gold letters attached to the white door announced that this was number Six's room, the Cloaked Schemer.

He knocked.

Xemnas had asked the two former Organization members to stay in the Castle that Never Was for the time being, seeing that they had nowhere to go. He also did that to keep an eye on the two, and Axel could tell that he'd do anything to revert them back to their Organization selves.

But the possibility of doing so seemed nonexistent.

The door swung open unexpectedly, and Axel found himself face-to-face with a blonde priestess.

"Oh, Axel!" she bowed her head and smiled, emerald-green eyes bright. "Are you okay already?"

"...erm, not really," he said truthfully, running a hand through his fiery locks. "I just wanted to ask you...from you...how exactly did it happen?"

She stared at him, and sighed, looking to the side. "Well...it was in Twilight Town, on the field trip. I was in our room when Ienzo came in and said Zexion had fallen. I was so excited and well...Larxene just broke down. I can't really explain the feeling."

"No, no, it's fine."

"Axel?" she looked up at him. "I'm sure she's okay, don't worry about her. She's a strong woman...I should know, she's my Nobody. I'm really sorry."

"Thanks," Axel said stiffly. "Thanks for telling me. See you two around."

"Goodbye," she offered a smile, and Arlene closed the door in his face.

Axel stood in front of the closed marble door for five minutes, gloved hands curling into fists, and shard of heart breaking. Salt brimmed at the edge of his eyes, and his breath hitched as he walked away.

It felt more like a goodbye than anything.

--------------------

Light.

Light criscrossed.

Light faded.

King Mickey muttered a curse under his breath.

He had been trying to reenable the Cornerstone for more than an hour now, and he had found out that the Cornerstone takes the energy needed to do so from the one doing the Enabling. And right now, energy was something he was very short on supply of.

He was starting to realize he was going to need Rinoa's curative spells after all.

An irony...he was activating the Cornerstone to keep out the person who he needed to cure him. But if he didn't reactivate it, sooner or later the Heartless will figure out that Disney Castle is up for grabs, and they would come without mercy. All beings of the dark would come, and he was positive it was a sure way to throw away the crown.

...King Mickey had much, much more plans for Disney Kingdom.

Panting, he raised the Kingdom Key once more and directed it at the crystal ball of light that was the Cornerstone.

_pat pat pat pat_

_swiish_

King Mickey whirled around, and caught the sight of a platinum-haired boy and a redwine-locked girl running down the stairs towards him. The Way to the Dawn was clutched tightly in the taller figure's hand.

He felt all the color drain out of his face.

Maybe this was what Ansem the Wise felt when he realized what he did to Roxas and Naminé.

"King Mickey," Riku started, eyes narrowed and voice dangerous. "What...what--"

"_What have you been covering up?_" Kairi finished shrilly, tears forming at the edge of her beryl eyes. Her fingers curled into fists and she shook her head. "_Why did you---?_"

The Cornerstone behind him suddenly whirred into life, the bands of light within spinning rapidly. King Mickey backed away, wondering what in the world caused it to activate this function...He had only seen the Cornerstone do this once before, and it was when it banished the thorns of darkness caused by Maleficent.

_Oh no, not Maleficent!_

"What's it--" the girl stammered out before falling to her knees. A beam of light had shot out of the Cornerstone and aimed itself right where Kairi's heart should be. King Mickey watched, stunned, as another figure, just like Kairi, fell backwards onto the stone floor. It was pitch black with sickly yellow eyes.

"P-Princess!" he gasped. "You have an _antiform?_"

Kairi looked back at her other self and screamed. Riku immediately took her arm and forced her to stand up and stagger away from her antiform. Turning back, he caught another glimpse of those pale yellow eyes before another beam of light shot out of the Cornerstone, this time engulfing the ebony-black figure of a girl. With a familiar Heartless-scream, she disappeared into strands of darkness.

And the Cornerstone was silent once more.

King Mickey stared. No Princess of Heart should have an antiform; they were pure of heart, for crying out loud!

_...wait. If I bring Sora here, then the Cornerstone will wash away Antiform...but he needs Antiform to live! Kairi doesn't since she never had an antiform in the first place..._

"What the _hell_ was that?" Riku's voice demanded, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"That," he sighed, "...is the banishment of Kairi's antiform."

"B-But she's pure of heart!" the Wielder countered, alternating a stare between him and the Princess. "She can't _have_ an antiform!"

"Then what was it that you saw, then?" he asked testily, walking over and tapping the Kingdom Key in the spot where Kairi's antiform dissipated. "Kairi, if you have been feeling more hatred than usual..or you have been hearing a voice in your head telling you it's okay to hate and to be angry and so forth...that's your Antiform talking. I only hope to the Creator that you did not listen."

The only answer the redheaded Princess gave to that was clapping her hands to her mouth, horror reflected in her eyes.

-----------------

Roxas lay awake, staring at the white ceiling.

He shifted slightly in his bed, hoping for a more comfortable position. But the thing that hurt wasn't on the outside, but in the inside...

He touched a hand gingerly to his cheek and winced slightly. Even if he had a higher threshold of pain than normal Somebodies, Naminé's slap still hurt.

But her words stung him even more.

It was enough to bring tears to his eyes and to make him wonder why he even bothered to chase an impossible dream.

His mind wandered back, and paused at the drinking game Luxord had orchestrated, where the prize was having one of the other contestants as the winner's slave for one month. He had tried to stop Naminé from drinking herself silly, but she had slurred out that she wanted to win because she wanted _him_, Roxas, to be her personal slave...

_"Nam... too much alcohol is bad for your health---"_

_"Rox _hic_ tell me _hic_ how exactly _hic_ am I goin' to _hic_ get sick when I'm _hic_ not even _hic_ alive," Naminé said forlornly, tracing her shotglass' rim with a precision unusual to those as drunk as she is right now. Her words stung Roxas; she had a point there---how could they get sick if they weren't even alive, they were just 'existing', and--_

_His brows furrowed again. "You're not alive, but you sure are drunk."_

_"Whaddya care _hic_ go away _hichic_ I won't let _hic _Larxy beat hic me---"_

_"Naminé, you may not be alive, but I don't want you to have a huge hangover tomorrow," Roxas pleaded as she drank her twenty-eighth shot._

_"But _hic _I want _hic _to win, I want _hic _to get _hic _you as _hic _my slave for _hic _a month."_

_Roxas' eyes widened. She wanted him to ber her slave? "What did I actually do this time to deserve that?" he asked._

_"Nothin' _hic _I just want you because _hic _you're _hic _I dunno _hic _maybe you're _hic _just so cute when _hic _you're annoyed and _hic _'cause _hic _I like _hic _you..."_

She said she liked me, Roxas thought, stealing a glance at the bed on the other side of the room. The blonde's back was to him, and it looked as if she was asleep. He felt his shard of heart twinge when he asked himself if 'like' always meant 'love'...

Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

------------------

Naminé lay awake, staring at the white wall.

She let her tears drip slowly onto her white pillow, trying to quiet her sobs as much as possible. She didn't want Roxas to see how much she tried to hide her feelings, how much it hurt her to say those things.

The truth always hurts.

She bit her lip, and clutched convulsively at her white bedspread, tears coming faster now, warm over her sore cheek. Naminé touched two fingers to the throbbing skin, not minding the physical pain, but the pain brought by his words. They repeated themselves over and over again in her head: _You're not a girl. Like you said, you're a Nobody._

God, that hurt so much.

Her mind wandered, and she came across her Other...Kairi.

With that, Riku.

The haunting feeling of being loved not for who she was but for someone she looks and talks and is actually a shadow of.

That's what Roxas loving her was like, wasn't it?

But, she wondered, ...was that really the truth, or was she just forcing herself to believe it?

Sighing, she closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

-------------------

"Huzzah!" Demyx exclaimed gleefully, shading in a final oval. "There we go!"

"You're finished?" Shelinda said wonderingly. He handed her the sheets of paper and beamed at the awed look on the Conductress' face.

He had been working on a piece for something like an hour now, inspired by the sheer presence of so many instruments around him and the praise of the brunette Conductress. The heck, he wasn't termed the Melodious Nocturne for nothing.

"Passion, huh?" she tapped a finger to the paper appraisingly. "This is for orchestra, right?"

He nodded, eyes searching the room for a violin. All were taken, except for Larxene's, which was mounted on the wall. Seeing how Shelinda was, she'd never let anyone else that the blonde herself touch it. "Yep. I wanna try the violin solo there."

"Why not?"

He got to his feet and walked quickly out of the room, mumbling something about getting a violin.

Demyx paused, having just closed the door. He had just heard Shelinda yell something that sounded like 'You can use--', but he had already shut the door, and the soundproof padding blocked her voice.

He stared down the long length of corridor, wondering where on earth he'd find a violin. Then an idea struck him, and he strode, almost skipped, down the hall.

Since he and the Superior were so chummy these days...why not ask him?

----------------------

Kairi shook her head slowly, trying to clear it. She...it was...so it _was_ her Antiform...

...and she listened to it.

"What...what are you--" the King started, but she cut him off, remembering why they were here.

"Sora. He killed himself, didn't he? He's now somewhere out there on your command and...and..." she turned away, unable to look at the mouse monarch without getting the urge to kill him right then and there.

King Mickey paused. "Who told you...this?"

"Sora's Antiform."

He laughed nervously. "You know better than to believe the shadow of a fallen Keyblade--I did not just say that."

Kairi spun on her heels. "_Fallen?_"

"King Mickey," Riku said shakily, closing his eyes and taking in a deep breath. "King Mickey, just say that everything Antiform said was a lie. Just say it. Say that everything's okay, that Sora's fine, that he's still out there sealing the Worlds. Please..." he trailed off, silver bangs shadowing his face and hiding his eyes.

Kairi's heart went out to Riku. His best friend was no longer, and most probably Riku was blaming himself for not being concerned enough with Sora's whereabouts.

"King Mickey," he pleaded once more, the tip of his Keyblade resting against the stone floor.

"I---"

"Hey, King Mickey? I was just wondering if you have another violin I can--_oh. Oh. _I think this is a bad time."

Kairi looked over her shoulder and saw a blonde-mulleted gangly teen frozen in the act of descending the stone steps. He was outfitted all in black and silver, but what struck Kairi the most was his face. She had seen his portrait in the Castle that Never Was, when that Saïx had dragged her to her holding cell.

"Number Nine, the Melodious Nocturne!" she yelled, staggering back. "Riku! King Mickey! _He's an Organization member!_"

Demyx panicked and portalled out, leaving trails of darkness rising from where he disappeared.

"Aren't you going to follow him?" She yelled, turning back to the monarch.

Riku shook his head and bit his lip, a hurt look crossing his face. "He knows."

"I'm sorry," King Mickey said once more. "I'm so sorry, Riku, Princess Kairi. Everything Antiform said was true."

She felt her heart stop, and she fell to her knees, the coldness of the stone floor nothing compared to the coldness she was feeling right now.

She...she really did betray Sora.

---------------------

"Ugh," Marluxia muttered, brushing his hair out of his face," where _is_ that pyro?"

He had been searching half the night for Axel, knowing very well that no matter how he denied it, number Eight still needed company. Stubborn pyromaniac.

He crossed the wide expanse of pavement in front of Memory's Skyscraper, eyes searching for any flash of red whatsoever. He had set all the Nobodies he could summon on finding the Flurry of Dancing Flames, but so far, none had come back alive to report on Axel's whereabouts.

This is getting crazy...

Marluxia growled, and stepped into Fragment Crossing. He almost bumped into Sora on the way, and he took a step back, groaning. "Hey, Wielder. Have you seen Axel anywhere?"

Sora looked over his shoulder and shrugged. "Nope. Good for him."

"Huh?"

He should've run when he got the chance, when he saw Sora's lips curve into a grin.

Regret always comes at the end, it seems.

----------------------

"Hey, Naminé!"

"Naminé, wake up!"

Roxas's eyes shot open, and he held his breath as he slightly turned his head and stole a glance. A panicked Demyx had portalled into their room and was pleading something with the blonde girl.

_Girl_, he thought. _You're always a girl to me, never a Nobody, Nam._

"What, Demyx?" The blonde asked sleepily as she turned to face the musician. "It's what...ten-thirty in the evening...go away..."

"Naminé, I really need your help. Your Other and that guy Riku saw me. In Disney Castle."

Roxas smirked, unseen. King Mickey was going to get what he deserved; with a furious Princess of Heart and an equally furious Keyblade Master the King had nowhere else to go. But it made him feel a little pity for the King...what was it that had driven the monarch to take extreme means to protect the realm of light?

The more he thought about it...the better it had seemed to be justified. If Sora was bound to the Light, the realm of Light will be safe unconditionally. If not, and his Nobody had died...well, it was one death versus the death of many if King Mickey hadn't tried the binding in the first place. It was like...Sora was the test subject. An experiment.

For a second there King Mickey sounded horribly similar to DiZ.

He scowled at the name.

"...and so?" Naminé yawned widely. "Let them see you, what's the problem with --- ?"

Roxas stifled a yawn, wondering how yawns managed to be contagious. He was in the act of closing his mouth when suddenly excruciating pain shot through the general region of his chest, and it took all of his willpower not to gasp. He settled instead for gritting his teeth as the pain coursed through. Sweat dripped down his skin and he felt his hands and feet freeze; if this was what a heart attack felt like, then he's sure lucky he didn't have a whole heart.

The pain continued for several minutes, constricting his shard of heart. Then it slowly faded away, until all that was left was the sweat and the coldness and the rapid _thud-thud_ of his shard of heart.

_What the hell was that?_

"...but Kairi recognized me!" Demyx interjected, becoming more and more panicked by the minute. Roxas, however, was thankful that none of the two Nobodies noticed his little episode. "King Mickey will _kill_ me if Kairi then asks anything about Sora!"

"But -- "

"Nam, please!"

"Dem--"

"C'mon! You got to chain their memories down!"

"De--"

"Nami_né_!"

"DEMYX. SHUT IT, I'M GOING ALREADY. Just...just be quiet, okay?" she mumbled, stealing what unmistakably was a glance at Roxas as she swung her feet over the side of her bed. Roxas hurriedly closed his eyes and breathed rhythmically in the pretense of sleep. The soft footsteps of who he presumed was Naminé was heard, followed by a whoop of glee from Demyx and the opening of a portal to the Corridors. Then the sound of it closing. Then...silence.

Roxas quickly sat up, got to his feet, and opened a portal of his own, ignoring the fluttering of his chest as he did so.

He had _got_ to see this.

--------------------

Naminé yawned. Again. And this time, she made no effort to cover it when Demyx closed the portal behind them.

They were standing in an underground room of some sort, judging from the stone floor and the stalactites hanging from the edge of the room. In the middle of it was a large glass sphere which served as the only source of illumination because of the slowly-spinning bands of light inside. Ah. If she wasn't mistaken, this was the Cornerstone of Light Xemnas was harping on a meeting many weeks before. Impressed, she walked up to it and pressed a hand to its cool surface.

Such a lovely protection...

"Nami_né!_" Demyx called irritably. "Chaining memories business here?"

"Oh," she turned backwards, smiling sweetly at the stunned looks on Kairi's, Riku's, and who she presumed was King Mickey. "Your memories, huh?"

"You...you!" Kairi yelled, lunging for her. Riku held her back, squirming in her grip. "Let me go, Riku! She chained my memories of Sora _down_! She's in the league with King Mickey!"

Naminé shook her head, and walked up to her Other. Kairi shot her a venomous look, and she laughed softly.

"Kairi, Kairi...If you haven't noticed, Xemnas was the one who collaborated with King Mickey...and that means Organization XIII stands behind him. But...I'm not one of either sides. I only did those because it was Sora's choice to do so," she paused, letting the words sink in. "He didn't want you to worry about him, even if he knew you could've cared for him less by that time, seeing that you already had Riku. He always thought of you, you know? Even if he had lost the ability to love a long time ago."

"Sora doesn't feel anymore, Kairi. He can't tell between warm and cold, between pain and comfort. He can't love or feel happy. All that's left are the hollow emptiness of a Nobody and the pain, anger and sorrow of a Heartless."

"You kept him from falling into the brink," Naminé continued boredly. "But you were the one who caused him to snap."

Silence hung in the air.

Kairi stared at her.

Riku suddenly straightened up and looked around the room.

"What, Riku?" she asked.

"Roxas. Come down here," the Wielder called out.

--------------------

"Heheh...for..got...you can...track..." Roxas staggered down halfway the stone steps, before losing his balance and rolling down the rest of the way. Demyx immediately rushed to his side, trying to help the youger Nobody up. The spiky-haired blonde was clutching his chest, gasping for air.

Riku narrowed his eyes as he watched the blonde struggle to get back on his feet and miserably fail. "What's up with you?"

"Like...hell...I...know," he choked out, hands and knees on the floor.

Riku turned to Naminé to ask, but the thought was suddenly banished by the look on her face, which was a highly toxic mix of disgust and anger. He turned to Kairi instead, but she was looking at number Thirteen with a horrified look on her face. Sighing, he turned to King Mickey, who, thankfully, had a neutral expression on his face.

"Have you any idea what's happening to Roxas?" he asked.

King Mickey's expression turned grim. "I have no idea, but it seems it has something to do with his heart. Shard of heart."

_No duh, he's clutching at his chest and groaning, _Riku wanted so much to say, but went against it.

Demyx shook Roxas' shoulders slightly. "C'mon, Rox, pull it together."

The blonde tried to smile weakly in reply, but only managed a grimace. "I think...I know what...this is," he breathed, hands curling into fists. "Three..."

Naminé shook her head and rolled her eyes.

"Two..."

"What is he counting off to?" Kairi asked nervously.

"...one."

A portal sprung up between them, and a very harried Xemnas stomped out.

------------------

"What are _you_ doing here!" Kairi hollered.

Xemnas didn't answer as her spun around, having heard a weak groan from behind him. His youngest, Roxas, was half-collapsed on the stone floor, eyes tightly shut and sweat beading on his brow as he clutched at the general region of his heart. "Roxas!"

"S-Superior," he tried to stand up, but he only managed to sit. Slowly he calmed, but he still shook slightly. "I-It was a shard...Sora's ripping them out."

A collective gasp rippled through the occupants of the room. However, Xemnas only shook his head resignedly and sighed. He clapped the boy on the shoulder, and, satisfied that Roxas was okay, turned back to the group.

Eyeing Riku, Kairi, King Mickey, and Naminé, (and internally wondering why they were all here in the first place; it took him a hell lot of time to find King Mickey) he decided to give up all secrecy in favor of saving Organization XIII. "We need help."

Riku narrowed his eyes. Kairi's eyebrows furrowed. King Mickey nodded and tapped his Keyblade on the stone floor. Naminé merely raised an eyebrow.

"I...I had just come across my second-in-command, Xigbar, lying in a pool of his own blood. Presumably, with shard of heart ripped out. Number Seven, Saïx, had informed me that the same had happened to Marluxia--"

Roxas let out a derisive laugh, and Xemnas ignored it.

"...I have a fallen Keyblade Master gone berserk on my hands, and I need your help to subdue him," he cleared his throat. "Permanently."

----------------

_Yawn_.

"And he tells me I didn't get enough sleep," Sora snorted. "Come _on_, Darkie, falling asleep already?"

_Shut up, I just yawned. Pssh. Like I'm going to miss this. Hell no._

The brunet laced his hands behind his head in his trademark carefree pose, whistling gleefully. He was careful not to trip over the unmoving blue-haired berserker as he stepped over, and he was just as cautious about not slipping on the blood. Yep. Blood was pre-tty hard to remove when it stained clothes.

"Well, I already got three," he mused, gazing up at the moon that was Kingdom Hearts. "Ten more."

_Nuh-uh. My control and that blonde chick split one, right?_

"So that makes eleven more."

_Don't worry. You've got all night to do this._

"...yep. I've got all night to get back what's rightfully mine," he said aloud, staring dead ahead at the white length of the hall he was walking through. "Roxas will keep them safe for me. And then..." he brought his hand across his neck in a slicing motion. "I get my heart back."

_So my control's been gettin' the shards? How come?_

" 'cause I've become so evil even my own heart won't come near me," he laughed loudly. "But no worries. Soon enough, it'll have nowhere else to go but to _me_."

_Smooth!_

"Yep," he agreed, walking down the hall and stopping in front of a door. The gold letters V and I were mounted on it, near eye level. "Such a fun day we have today."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

SUCH A FUN DAY WE HAVE TODAY, NE?

Haha. I think I'm going insane.

And if you haven't figured it out, it all started in the afternoon (when Roxas and Naminé fought), and continues into the night. The 'she' I referred to was Kairi, and it's true.

SO THE END COMES.

Cuuute.

Haha.

Read and review! Flamers can go ahead.


	29. Fight

...rated T for violence and language. **fantasykh-rider**, your oneshot is called **Bus Stop** and yeah, it's romance/angst. For the life of me I couldn't think of a oneshot involving Darkie, so...hope you like it.

Another thing! The **300th** reviewer gets to request a oneshot! Yay!

You can just tell it's nearing the end.

**Disclaimer:** Wish I did. Don't we all?

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**D**u_e_**l**

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**-**

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**T **r** i **n** i **t** y **C** o **l** l **a** p **s** e**

**N** o **b** o **d** y **C **o** l **l** a **p** s **e

**-**_tondemo nai!-_

**-**

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He didn't think Kairi could look even more physically horrified, but when Xemnas said 'permanently', the redwine-locked Princess of Heart did just that. Pale skin went white and clammy hands turned to ice.

Riku, however, stared at Xemnas disbelievingly. "What do you mean, permanently?"

The Superior had the common sense not to answer.

King Mickey had forgone going to the Castle That Never Was, saying that he'd rather confront Sora another time, when the brunet Wielder wasn't more likely to kill him. Pssh. Like there would ever be such a time. The King had went back to trying to reactivate that Cornerstone, panting as they --- a stunned Demyx, a grim-faced Xemnas, a rather shaky Riku, a still-horrified Kairi, a stoic Naminé (not that he cared), and Roxas himself (okay albeit a bit dizzy from the whole shard-of-heart-restoration thing) --- left for the Corridors.

As number One led the way through the swirling blackness of the Corridors, Roxas wondered internally why _he_ himself was getting the shards Sora was ripping out. It sure wasn't the distance; Disney Castle was as far as from the Castle That Never Was as it could be, and with Kingdom Hearts hovering over it, hearts --- or shards of heart --- were much more likely to stay in the World That Never Was.

The only logical connection Roxas could make was that _he_ was Sora's Other. Maybe...just maybe. Sora's shards of heart found its original owner much too dark for its liking, thus finding another home. Not just any other home, but the soul of a Keyblade Master. Riku already had a whole heart; so did King Mickey. Roxas was the obvious choice.

_But_, he thought uneasily, _that makes me Sora's number one target._

As soon as they had portalled back into the Castle, right into the hall of Empty Melodies, they were hit with a blur of flaxen hair and a rush of tears. Roxas furrowed his eyebrows in surprise.

"X-Xemnas!" Arlene cried hysterically, clutching the front of the silver-haired leader's coat. "You have got to...you have to---you have to find...!"

"Calm down, woman!" he exclaimed, trying to detach the blonde priestess from his coat, to no avail.

"H-how the _hell_ can I calm down!" she bellowed, tears streaming now.

Roxas stared at Arlene. In fact, he and Xemnas stared at her at the same time. Uh. Was a priestess supposed to curse? Was a priestess supposed to be even _able _to curse?

"What happened, Larx?" Demyx asked, oblivious to the fact that she had already reverted. Roxas cringed.

"T-that b-boy...! The half-Heartless one! He knocked at our door and everything and then suddenly he charged and Ienzo just managed to get us out of there and we ran down the halls and somewhere in the lower floors we got separated and---and---"

"I told you to calm down!"

Arlene ignored Xemnas and continued ranting. "The boy's a merciless killer, now! He wants to restore his heart!" she wrung her hands and her voice cracked. "I-Ienzo!"

Demyx raised an eyebrow. "Wha...? Ienzo?"

"Professor Larxene..." Kairi said worriedly. "What---"

"How many _times_ do I have to tell you people that I am not Larxene! I'm Arlene, get it?" She yelled.

"Arlene," Naminé rolled her eyes. "You haven't told them yet."

The blonde priestess blinked. "Oh. Really." She turned to face the redhead and the platinum-haired Wielder. "I'd just like you to know that I was Larxene, number Twelve. When the boy Sora gave my Nobody one of his shards I came to be once more, and Ienzo too, in what you know as Professor Zexion's body. We've been fighting for control ever since, and on that field trip to Twilight Town both Larxene and Zexion collapsed. End of story, Wielder Riku," she paused, and, crossing her forearm across her chest, curtsied to the redwine-locked girl, "Princess Kairi. Forgive my impoliteness, Princess."

Demyx let out a low whistle.

Riku looked as if he was about to throw up. "...so you have a shard of Sora's heart now?"

Arlene nodded curtly.

Roxas, once again, let out a derisive snort. Whether Arlene was a priestess or not, she still exhibited Larxene's traits, like the normal cursing and the chipper yet straight-to-the-point way of talking. He suddenly wondered if Arlene would still be Arlene if she had her shard of heart released...

He fell to his knees and gasped. He just _had_ to think about shards of heart getting released, didn't he?

"Roxas!" he heard Kairi yell distantly. He doubled over in pain, at the pain shooting through his chest as another shard of heart merged with his own. White-hot daggers stabbed metaphorically at his ribcage, and the feeling of constriction radiated throughout his upper torso.

This time, through the haze of pain and agony, he distinctly saw the memory the shard was linked to --- Sora promising to return the Oathkeeper to Kairi. Roxas concentrated and knew whose shard it was: it was number Six's. Ienzo's. Just as Arlene had feared.

He and Sora had talked about this topic when the latter was in one of his more lucid moments, early on in his Heartless-ness. The brunet was surprisingly (for someone who's just killed himself) fascinated at how his heart was split into thirteen shards.

_Sora bounced a little on the white bed, yawning. Roxas raised an eyebrow. He had never seen a Heartless yawn, and if Sora was only a half-Heartless, then the real thing yawning would be something to remember. "Wow...exactly thirteen shards, eh, Rox?"_

_"Yep," Roxas nodded, leaning his head against the wall as he sat cross-legged next to his Nobody. "How'd that happen?"_

_Sora shrugged. He then suddenly turned to face Roxas and he grinned. Which, with those half-fangs, looked remotely disturbing. "How about your shard? Can you feel it?"_

_"I sure can, considering the fact that I can actually _feel_ right now."_

_They laughed together, and Roxas swiped at the tears of mirth from the corner of his eyes. "Actually...I've been dreaming of the time when you and Riku crashed into Destiny Islands," he mused._

_"Really?" Sora asked excitedly. "...and Vexen said something about seeing Kairi on Hook's ship!"_

_"So maybe...uh, can I rub it in that your heart's gone?"_

_The brunet stared at him for a second, then burst into laughter. "Sure, Roxas. Give me your best shot!"_

_"So maybe...Kairi shattered your heart into thirteen shards, each shard containing one of your most important memories of her. Like...I dunno..." he trailed off, waiting for a reaction from Sora, violent or not._

_"...ah. Let me see," he tapped a sharp-nailed fingertip against his chin. "So of course, it'll start with us three talking about new worlds, on our paopu tree."_

_"You want to work out who's got what shard?" Roxas asked disbelievingly. His Nobody sure knew how to torture himself emotionally. Either that, or he had become so numb that he didn't feel anything anymore at all._

_"Of course, Roxas," Sora said boredly. "It's my heart, after all." And he did whatever Heartless do when they roll their eyes._

That afternoon, in his room, he and Sora had worked out what shard every Organization member had. After doing so they did go around the Castle asking if their guesses were correct --- and they actually were. Roxas was pretty grateful none of his fellow Organization members got violent.

Xemnas had, as Sora said, the shard with the memory of talking about new Worlds. Xigbar got Sora and Kairi's little sunset rendevous at the port. Sora seeing a young Kairi and her grandmother in the Hollow Bastion Library went to Xaldin. As Vexen had said, the scientist had gotten the memory of seeing a lifeless redhead on Hook's ship. Lexaeus had the memorable restoration of Kairi's heart (and Roxas grinned at that particular memory; of course, he had come to be that way). The 'Oathkeeper Promise', as Sora had dubbed it, went to Zexion. Saïx, contrary to his, uh, violent nature, got the shard of heart with Sora's memory of getting separated from Kairi after sealing Kingdom Hearts.

Axel's shard, however, Roxas had no idea how that happened; it was the one in Castle Oblivion, where Naminé had released the chains on Sora's memory, and turned herself back to Kairi. Eh? Sora was supposed to remember nothing of Castle Oblivion. Maybe the blonde girl missed a spot.

Demyx had a memory that was Roxas', actually. It was when he fell off the Station Tower and touched Kairi's memory. Well...Sora _had_ talked to Kairi through him (and stupid, stupid thing to say, 'starts with an 's' ', geez, why not say just Sora?) and Naminé.

Seeing himself and Kairi dancing in each other's arms in Halloweentown was Luxord's shard. Marluxia had the memory of Sora and Kairi's reunion at the Castle That Never Was. Larxene got the shard of heart engraved with the memory of Naminé and him remerging with their Others once more.

Roxas himself got the memory of returning Oathkeeper.

And Sora just shrugged when Naminé said her split shard had the memory of Kairi shattering his heart on Halloween.

...strange.

One bolt of pain after another shot once again through his chest, and Roxas screamed. The feeling of being stabbed and having a shard of heart ripped out was actually being passed over to him, and Thirteen didn't like it one bit. Images flashed before his eyes, and he knew whose shards were being ripped out.

"Roxas!" it was Xemnas' voice this time, and if there was such a thing as alarm, this was it. "Who ---"

"L-Luxord and...and...Xaldin," he managed to choke out as he stared blindly at the floor, waiting for the pain to pass. "Cripes, Sora could make it a little less more painful."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

"_Wielder! What are you --- AH!_"

Lexaeus straightened up immediately, and craned his neck, listening for where the sound came. It sounded horribly like Vexen in his lab, just across the restored Proof of Existence from his room. And that laughter sounded disturbingly like a particular half-brunet Keyblade Master.

Number Five summoned his tomahawk and portalled out to the hall in front of Vexen's laboratory, thinking that they should have restrained the boy when they had had the chance. Now he was running loose, or at least, he sounded like he was.

He threw open the door just in time to see Sora plunge the Dark Keyblade to a barely-conscious Chilly Academic. "Oh Creator, Sora!" he yelled, unable to take his eyes off the grisly sight.

"Yeah, Lex," he said, gesturing to the shining shard of heart floating upwards from the blood and tatters that was Vexen's chest. Sora sighed happily. "Another one freed..."

"You. Are. Insane," he breathed, staring at the Wielder with a mixture of revulsion and pity.

Sora stood up and swung the Dark Keyblade over his shoulder. He tilted his head thoughtfully. "If you were in my place, Lexaeus, wouldn't you go insane too?"

The last thing he heard was Sora's voice whispering "I'm halfway there..."

Then, silence.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"Ah. So sorry," Rinoa smiled sheepishly. "Got lost 'round here. Decided to explore the Castle a bit."

Xemnas threw a look that said plainly 'YOU'VE BEEN '_EXPLORING_' THE CASTLE?', but she ignored it, turning to observe the people that comprised the harried party. The blonde priestess (who was a childhood friend of hers), Arlene, had thrown her arms around Rinoa, hugging her and saying over and over again how she's been so relieved that Rinoa's still alive. Number Nine, Demyx, looked on bemusedly, waiting for an explanation once Arlene had released her chokehold.

Roxas blinked, and blinked some more. "Uh. You're Rinoa, right?" he asked hesitantly.

Rinoa nodded bemusedly at the expression of bewilderment now frozen on the blonde Nobody's face. "And you're my favorite customer, Roxas."

"I am not freaking out," he breathed back. "No. I'm not."

"Have I seen you before?" Riku suddenly asked, narrowing his aquamarine eyes.

"Maybe," she agreed, grateful that she had let her wings dissipate. She wanted to surprise these youngsters. "Riku, right? Keyblade Master of Twilight?"

The platinum-haired Wielder looked a little taken aback. "Uh...sure. I've never been called that before."

Rinoa sighed. "Roxas' the Keyblade Master of Light. (at this the said Wielder made a little choking noise) Sora's the Keyblade Master of Darkness. King Mickey's the Keyblade Master of Control --- "

"Uh, if you don't mind me asking," Kairi cut in, "but who are you, and how do you know these things?"

Xemnas turned to her and watched interestedly. Rinoa shot him a small smile before stepping back and summoning her sorceress powers. She felt wings sprout out of her back and her irises turn amber. Kairi gasped and staggered back into Riku. "Sorceress Rinoa," she put a hand across her chest and bowed. "Princess Kairi, it's an honor."

Kairi stared at her for a moment, before returning the bow, bewildered. "Uhm, the pleasure is all mine."

_The girl still remembers how to return a greeting,_ Rinoa thought, straightening up. _Interesting._

"...how about the second part of my question?" the redhead pressed on. "How'd --- "

"I'm a sorceress, Princess...but that has nothing to do with how I know the present Wielders. It's just simple deduction. Riku's not of the dark, nor is he of the light. So he's of twilight. Roxas controls light. Naturally, it goes without saying that Sora's become the Keywielder of Darkness. And King Mickey presides over the Masters, so he's the Wielder of Con--"

"What do you mean," Kairi breathed angrily, " 'It goes without saying' that Sora's of the dark now?"

"Princess, he's been ripping his shards of heart out of their bodies. His Heartless is the most powerful one in existence. Of course he's evil."

"Don't say that --- "

A portal sprung up between them, strands of darkness rising from the marble floor and weaving themselves into an opening into the corridors. A very shaken Axel stepped out, carrying a bloody and unmoving Ienzo.

Arlene screamed incoherently at the sight, running, almost throwing herself at Axel. "Ienzo! _No!_"

The fiery-haired pyromaniac bit his lip and lay the man near a column. Arlene immediately rushed to the fallen scientist and grabbed his hand tightly, tears falling on the white floor and the black coat and the bloody tatters that once held a shard of heart.

"I found him in the Library. He was probably researching on how to reverse the Knighting," Axel knelt next to the sobbing priestess and whispered what probably was words of comfort, but Rinoa could see Axel himself was hurting as well.

_Ah, the wonders of having a heart._

"I-is that Professor Zexion?" Kairi stammered.

"Ienzo," Roxas corrected. "And yeah, before you ask, it _was_ Sora who did that."

If looks could kill, Roxas would be dead now, even if technically he wasn't even alive to begin with.

Rinoa held back a smile.

Naminé yawned widely.

Number Thirteen suddenly clutched a hand to his chest once again, pain contorting his face into a grimace. "It's...Vexen and...Lexaeus..." he trailed off, holding on to a frightened Demyx for support. "That...really...hurts...!"

"Another one?" Arlene said suddenly, getting to her feet. Surprised, Axel did the same a second later. The priestess walked back up to them, a look of steely resolve on her face. "I want to see who did this to Ienzo suffer the same way. I want to fight."

Kairi choked.

"...you're a priestess, Arlene," Xemnas reminded her. "You don't---"

"I did not spend my whole life in a seminary only to learn supportive magic," she breathed, seeming to stand straighter now. "You come to know of some things you would never have imagined otherwise."

"Let's go," she said, and she swept away, leading them into Naught's Skyway.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Kairi gazed upwards at Kingdom Hearts, finding no comfort in the cold light it showered upon them. The last time she had been here she was fighting for her life; this time, she was...she was fighting to _take_ a life.

Sora's life, no less.

_But Sora's already dead..._she told herself. _He's barely existing now. Can you love somebody who can't love you back?_

She knew, as a Princess of Heart, she was a protector of the realm of light by default. Thus it was her duty to eliminate any threat that rose up against the peace of her realm. But...

Sora saved her own heart; Sora did everything to save her; Sora said nothing when she shattered his heart, for fear of making her unhappy. Sora had sacrificed so much for her, and there she was, thinking that the brunet Wielder had abandoned her for good.

She'll find a way to save Sora. After all, she was the one who pushed him over the brink.

"Oi. There you guys are."

Kairi blinked, and the air around them seemed to thicken with apprehension. A familiar voice floated down the stairs, and the figure of a spiky-haired boy came into view. Kairi froze and gazed at him. Blood stained his clothes and shoes, making the ebony-black cloth shimmer faint maroon. Strands of darkness trailed him wherever he moved, and pools of rapidly-fading darkness marked where his feet had trod.

"Hi!" Sora greeted mundanely, taking a long sip from what looked like a juice pack. Until Kairi realized, with a sharp intake of breath, that it was _blood_ that was leaking out of the white straw. Beside her, Riku growled loudly.

"Wielder!" Xemnas yelled, summoning his sabers and holding them in a ready ring above him.

"Xemnas!" the brunet imitated in an overly melodramatic voice, giggling. "Pssh. Did you know I've been looking all over for you guys? Especially _you_, Demyx."

Without a moment's warning Sora had pushed himself off the ground and leapt right at the blonde Nobody with inhuman speed and strength, jump-kicking him right back into the Hall of Empty Melodies.

Kairi watched as the now-empty blood pack bounced once on the marble floor before coming to a complete stop.

"Demyx," Roxas growled, Keyblades coalescing into his clenched fists as he ran after the musician Nobody.

They ran into the Hall just in time to see Sora shake a water-drenched head, flinging the ice-cold liquid everywhere. Demyx was lying sprawled at the far side of the marble square, and as far as Kairi could see, the Melodious Nocturne was not moving.

"I did _not_ ask for a shower, thank you very much," Sora muttered, quick-running to the Nobody's side.

"No!" Roxas yelled, but before he could react Sora had already called the Dark Keyblade and plunged it into Demyx's chest. "So_ra!_"

A sliver of bright pink heart floated out of Demyx, and Sora laughed as Roxas collapsed to the ground, shard of heart disappearing into him. "Rox, take care of them," the brunet whispered audibly, then stood up, facing them.

Kairi had never felt so afraid before in her entire life, as she locked eye contact with sky-blue and sickly yellow.

Sora grinned.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"_Heartless!_" the brunet Wielder raised his Dark Keyblade, and what seemed like a solid mass of darkness answered his call. Uh. The darkness had eyes. Yellow eyes.

Axel felt the back of his neck prickle, and he whirled around. The balcony upstairs was overflowing with those things. The entrance and exits of the Hall were blocked. They were, in effect, trapped. Gritting his teeth, he summoned his chakrams and held them loosely at his side, ready to throw them at a moment's notice. Seeing that Axel had drawn his weapons, the others had done the same.

Xemnas resummoned his sabers and called his Sorcerers. Roxas and Naminé summoned their Keyblades (and Axel still wondered how the girl had managed to summon the things when she wasn't a Master) and his best friend had called his Slayers to action.

Riku held his Way to the Dawn at the ready, and was standing back-to-back with Kairi, who was holding her own flowery Keyblade in a defensive stance. Rinoa was just standing there, wings folded and amber eyes peering around curiously. Arlene had her mouth set in a grim line, and no less then five kunais were held in between the fingers of each hand.

"Let's get this show on the road, then," Sora called, and brought down the Keyblade he was holding in a pointing gesture. "Get my shards back!"

Chaos broke out.

The darkness turned out to be comprised of Neoshadows, antennae jerking spasmodically as they rushed towards them. The Nobodies the Superior and Roxas had summoned, Sorcerers and Slayers mostly, were much, much more capable than the Neoshadows, but the Heartless had sheer number on their side. It seems that Sora had gone for quantity rather than quality.

Axel cut down one Heartless after the other, some with a well-placed swipe of his fire wheel, others with a storm of Firagas. Next to him Arlene was throwing kunais with abandon, each and every metal knife connecting with a Neoshadow's head. Lightning danced with fire and the Heartless scattered.

Suddenly Sora darted through a break in his Heartless' ranks and Axel swore the brunet had winked at him before stabbing Arlene through the back.

"_Arlene!_" he yelled, dismissing his chakrams and rushing to her side as she fell. Her emerald-green irises faded away into sapphire blue before they closed, and her waist-long hair faded away into a shoulder-length cut. Axel caught her in his arms and turned her over, her blood staining his sleeves. He didn't really care.

He didn't know whether to feel happiness or anguish; Arlene was gone, but Larxene was back. Only, she wasn't moving. Okay. Happiness seemed something more of a not-suited feeling right now.

"AXEL!" that was Naminé.

Sora stabbed him.

He felt the metal slice into his chest and carve it open, shard of heart escaping into the air.

The last thing he made sure to do was to put his arms around Larxene and to protect her from further injury.

Axel collapsed with the Savage Nymph in his arms and a smile on his face.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Xemnas felt panic.

Panic was something he should not be feeling right now.

He watched in horror as number Eight collapsed side-by-side with a newly-restored number Twelve. He couldn't believe it. Xemnas stared as Sora straightened up and tapped the Dark Keyblade on the marble floor, letting the blood drip down in ribbons of crimson.

The boy killed them once, then brought them back from the darkness. He gives them a shard of heart, but takes it back by killing them once more. Oh Creator, what had they Nobodies done to deserve this torture?

Sora whirled around, and smiled at him with a smile enough to freeze his blood.

The smile of a killer. A _serial_ killer.

He charged, and Xemnas brought together his sabers in a defensive formation, ready to rain down on Sora. And they did.

Xemnas' eyes widened in disbelief as Sora emerged from the explosion without so much as a scratch, with Dark Keyblade raised up and ready to stab. He staggered backward in an attempt to dodge it, but the chance of doing so was almost nonexistent. "So--"

_bang!_

This time, sky-blue and yellow widened as Sora looked up to see what it was, as his Dark Keyblade was knocked out of his grip and spun uselessly to the floor. Xemnas looked up in imitation of Sora, and his mouth almost fell open in surprise.

Xigbar was standing sideways on thin air, katars in his hands and Assassins walking around him at awkward angles.

"Hey!" Sora pouted, flipping backwards and landing crouched in the middle of the Hall. "You weren't supposed to do that!"

"Kiddo, I'm already a Nobody," number Two replied, walking down his space until he could walk on the ground normally. "Take out my shard of heart, pssh. I can still exist 'cause, like I said, I already was a Nobody in the first place."

"Wha...?" Xemnas stared, hands frozen in a defensive stance.

"I only wanted your heart, anyway," Sora ignored Xemnas, Recalling his Dark Keyblade to his right hand. "This time, you won't have a heart to save you!" he sprinted towards the eyepatched Nobody.

"_Now, Vexen!_"

A storm of two-feet-long icicles hit Sora from the right, knocking the brunet to the side with the shards of ice lodged in various parts of his body. Kairi screamed and Riku had to hold her back to keep her from rushing to Sora's aid.

"Vexen!" Roxas yelled gleefully, pausing from swinging his Keyblades. "I thought you were dead!"

The blonde scientist walked calmly from behing the screen of Heartless, shield held in front of him easily. "I was never alive to begin with."

One by one, the fallen members of Organization XIII portalled into the Hall, and Xemnas could see even Axel and Larxene were starting to stir. Relief flooded him as black-coated figures walked to his side, weapons drawn and summoned Nobodies ready. Roxas didn't have the chance to join them, and so did Naminé; they were completely surrounded by Neoshadows.

No matter. With Organization XIII back and _furious_ at Sora, the fallen Keyblade Master stood no chance of getting away without serious injury. At the very least.

"Axel, get your hand _off_ me," Larxene muttered as she walked up to them, but didn't compain all the same when Axel refused to let go of her hand.

Marluxia elbowed Axel in the ribs, trying and miserably failing to hold back a knowing grin.

Luxord and Demyx rolled their eyes.

Zexion actually _laughed_.

Xaldin turned to Xemnas and nodded his head. "Let's end this."

"Awww...touching, touching," Sora called, and the Heartless, beside those assaulting Roxas and Naminé, ranged themselves behind him, leaving a stunned Riku and Kairi hanging. "Looks like you're all gonna fade _together!_" he bellowed, and the Heartless attacked as a flood of darkness.

But Organiztaion XIII was not to be underestimated, and they attacked with their all.

Rinoa sighed bemusedly beside Xemnas, touching down lightly on the ground as she flapped her wings slightly. "You are one sight to behold, the Thirteenth Order."

"Sorceress," Xemnas asked loudly as he brought down a ring of Sabers, annihilating a good five or six Neoshadows as he did. Rinoa had done actually nothing since they had seen Sora. "Whose side are you on?"

"Realm of darkness, of course," she answered with a sweet smile.

Xemnas felt his shard of heart plummet. His Nobody Sorcerers were no match for a full-blooded Sorceress.

"...but this isn't my battle to fight," she said distantly, tucking a lock of ebony hair behind her ear. "Whether or not Sora loses, I'll just have to see how this plays out and make the best of it. And besides," she whispered. "...the side with the sorceress _always_ wins."

And with that, she flapped her wings and disappeared, vanishing silently with that mysterious smile on her face.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Sora looked over his shoulder as Rinoa disappeared in a flash of sorceress wings, leaving a few feathers to float to the floor. "Finally. Told her she can't interfere, anyway," he said, before turning back to Riku and Kairi.

Riku narrowed his eyes. He had figured out just a minute ago that the Heartless was just a diversion to draw away Organization XIII so that Sora can focus on them. "Sora."

"Riku," he shot back, a smile curving his half-ebony lips. "Ex-best friend."

"Sora, don't do this."

"Pssh," he rolled his eyes, or one sky-blue eye, actually. "Do you honestly think I'd still listen to you after what you guys did? Unbelievable."

"W-we're sorry, okay!" Kairi said nervously, Keyblade trembling in her hand.

Sora stopped short, appearing to debate with himself on the matter. His blue eye softened visibly, and he shook his head again and again. "I don't think...I mean..._no, I don't_...But...Yeah, they did, but...oh...now that you phrase it that way...come to think of it..._no way_...huh...shut _uuuup_, Darkie...fine...yah, fine."

He nodded to himself, and, raising his Dark Keyblade, charged at Kairi.

Riku immediately rushed in front of her, blocking the 'Blade with his Way to the Dawn. He heard Kairi whimper softly as he forced Sora back with a rush of strength, making him flip backwards and land nimbly on his feet. "Never. You're taking her _over my dead body_."

Sora smiled, and postioned himself in his trademark fighting stance: feet planted firmly on the ground, crouching low with both hands on the handle of the Keyblade. He tilted his head thoughfully and his smile widened into a smirk. "That can be arranged, Riku."

With one final deep breath, the two best friends started to duel.

- - - - - - - - - - -

_tondemo nai! - _never

yesh for cliffies. :x

So sorry guys for the kinda late update. Ugh. School hurts. I'm dancing on pins and needles right now, 'cause my grades are due out this week. Wheee.

read&review, I'll get back to ya.

flamers can flame all they want. whooo. flame. so pretty. X3


	30. Lost

:x

My lips are sealed.

Yanno why the last chapter's called Collapse? 'cause Sora, Kairi, and Riku's trinity collapsed. Organization XIII got all broken up.

So...you pretty much have an idea of what Nobody Break means, right? Right?

Go read!

**Disclaimer: **Kingdom Hearts belongs to Square Enix. This laptop belongs to me! NYAA!

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_**L**os**t**_

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**-**

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**N **o **b **o** d **_y _**B **r **e **a **k**

_watashi wa anata o aishite imasu._

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Kairi watched, frozen, as the two Keyblade Masters clashed in sparks of electricity and flashes of light and trails of darkness, each not letting the other get the upper hand.

Sora charged with the Dark Keyblade held up high, and Riku dodged it easily, swiping the Way to the Dawn down in an attempt to knock his adversary off his feet. The brunet, however, grinned eerily and actually _jumped_ off the Dawn's blade, making Riku stagger. He then flipped over and landed a good twenty feet away from the silver-haired Wielder.

"Come _on, _Riku! Is that all you've got?" he called, laughing, white fangs and perfect rows of teeth glimmering in the half-ebony of his face.

"That's not even _half _of what I can do, Sora!" Riku yelled back, creating Dark Firaga fireballs and hurling them it at his ex-best friend with precise abandon. Kairi caught the fractional widening of Sora's eyes as he was caught unawares by the fireballs, and he dodged them awkwardly, with the last two ones grazing his Keyblade shoulder.

"Damn," he muttered as he twirled around the Keyblade and sent it flying at Riku in a Strike Raid. Riku dodged it by leaping and he landed back on his feet, panting.

"Sora, please!" Kairi called, ducking to dodge a stray Neoshadow's rearing claw and smashing the end of her rather flowery Keyblade into its head, "Don't listen to Antiform!"

Miraculously, the brunet paused for a split second, enabling Riku to take another swipe at him. He barely dodged it and he shook his head, looking dazed. The silver-haired Wielder exchanged glances with Kairi, and nodded, knowing what he must do to get his best friend back from the brink.

_But Naminé said that he was already over the brink...I pushed him,_ Kairi thought, cringing at herself.

"Sora, come on," Riku said once more as they crossed Keyblades. "We can work this out!"

The brunet remained silent, teeth gritted with the effort of dueling with a Keyblade Master. Sickly yellow and sky-blue eye narrowed as he pushed Riku back, and he hacked tirelessly at the Dawn with the Dark Keyblade. The sound of metal crashing against metal, combined with the metallic scent of crimson blood, filled the air as Sora managed to slash Riku's shoulder open.

"Riku!" Kairi cried out, and sprinted towards the Wielder, but Sora threw her one look and Neoshadows suddenly besieged her, leaving her no choice but to defend herself and steal furtive glances out of the corner of her eye as Riku staggered to his feet.

However, the silver-haired Wielder pressed on, fighting Sora and driving him back into the Nobody symbol mounted on the far end of the Hall. "Listen to us, not to him, Sora!" he repeated over and over with every resounding _crash_ their Keyblades made. They danced the dance of death in a circle, and Kairi kept trying to go to them, kept trying to stop them from fighting and drawing each other's blood. The Neoshadows, however, had seen to that she was too distracted with defending herself.

Sora and Riku crossed Keyblades once again and pushed off each other. They circled each other like hawks ready for the kill. The brunet's vest was torn and blood blossomed from the foot-long gash on his back. Crimson liquid dribbled down from his shoulder to the Dark Keyblade, but Kairi noticed, however, that he wasn't even breathing hard. In fact, he wasn't breathing at all.

She blinked, and stared for a few more seconds. He wasn't breathing. Just standing there.

Uh. Maybe he inherited the characteristic of Heartless that they don't breathe?

Riku's shoulder was torn open and crimson stained his own white vest. His clothes suffered various gashes and tears, and even his normally platinum hair was decorated by splotches of scarlet. He was panting heavily, and he crouched over, one hadn over his bleeding shoulder. His expression mirrored excruciating pain. Apparently, he had underestimated Sora's strength, and now, one more attack will do him in.

Kairi swiped at two more Neoshadows desperately.

The fallen Keyblade Master sprinted towards him.

"Sora, please," Riku pleaded one last time, spreading his palms open. "Come back to us."

The brunet suddenly stopped short, Dark Keyblade poised to attack. Both eyes widened and his mouth dropped open, as if he'd just realized what he was about to do. "R-Riku?" he stammered, voice shaking.

Riku grinned. "Yeah?" he yelled happily, nodding. Kairi couldn't help but smile too. Riku had gotten to him! She knew he could do it!

Sora paused.

And his lips curved into a smirk. "Bite me."

He reared back to gain momentum and lunged forward, Dark Keyblade aimed right at Riku's open chest. He had left himself defenceless when he spread his palms open earlier.

Kairi broke free of the Neoshadow onslaught and sprinted in front of Riku, reaching him just in time to block the Dark Keyblade with her own. She had to use both hands to successfully prevent Sora from bringing it down in a vertical slash.

"Leave him alone!" she yelled, tears blinding her vision. Sora _was_ gone. The Keyblade Master she loved was gone. In his place stood a monster.

But then, for the millionth time that evening, Kairi regretted those thoughts.

For as she locked eye contact with the fallen Wielder, both of his eyes flashed sky-blue, and a solitary crimson tear traced its lonely path down his ebony cheek.

"Fine," he breathed hoarsely as he pushed back her Keyblade and sent her and Riku crashing to the marble floor, "Fine, Kairi. Go and be happy with Riku. Go and have fun until I take both of your hearts. As long as you're happy. I thought you loved me, but as long as you're happy."

And with that, he called his Heartless back and ran up the wall to the balcony overlooking the Hall of Empty Melodies.

Kairi, at that moment, felt her own heart break.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

He ran up the wall, not letting anyone see the trail of salt and metallic scarlet he left behind. He cursed his ability to weep blood; it made it so much more harder to look like he wasn't crying.

_So. After all the revelations and the whole shebang, she still loves Riku, buddyboy._

"Don't say that," he croaked as he vaulted over the balcony railing and landed nimbly on the marble floor. He lifted a pale hand to scrub his tears away, breath hitching in his throat. "Damn, I thought Nobodies weren't supposed to feel."

_Ah. You've got me, remember? Hello? Heartless side here?_

As much as it was against his will to do so, Sora chuckled. Somehow, Antiform always managed to cheer him up. Either that, or he was getting closer and closer to crossing the thin line of insanity.

_Uh! Uh! You're already insane!_

"Shut up." Sora straightened up, and brought the Dark Keyblade to rest on his shoulder, ignoring the pain that shot through his arm. Riku sure knew how to duel.

Sora paused, and took a deep breath as he surveyed the area below him.

Thirteen black-coated figures stared up at him, silver and grey Nobodies ranged behind them in lines. Each figure held a weapon, and Sora, in truth, didn't really like the prospect of going through each and every one. Sure, he'd have no problem finishing them off, but for crying out loud! He'd be wasting a lot of time!

And another thing...the blood might never come off.

Sora liked blood _in _him, not _on_ him. Gross.

_No choice, buddyboy. Mr. Rebonded has one of the last shards. Get him, then the blonde chick, then my control._

"I know, like you haven't been repeating yourself the last few minutes," he muttered, smirking to himself as he ran a claw-free hand through his hair. He brought his hand down in an unspoken order to the Heartless behind him.

"_Attack them all, and keep Riku and Kairi out of my way._"

The Neoshadows crawled down rapidly and Sora leapt off the balcony, landing right in the middle of the Heartess onslaught. He grinned as he charged at a bewildered Xemnas, sabers poised at the ready. The sabers crashed down, but Sora had dodge-rolled at the last minute in time to avoid the damage. However, he found himself at the sharp end of a matte-blue claymore.

Saïx grinned down on him, an eerie white glow surrounding his figure. "Hello, Wielder."

Sora grinned back, even giving him a small wave of his own. "Hi, Saïx."

They stared at each other for a moment, before Sora brought his legs up and kicked the berserker clean across the hall, leaving a rather large crack in the wall. No matter. When he's finished, this Castle won't be anything more than a pile of nonexistent rubble, anyway.

He charged at Xemnas once more, this time managing to deflect a blizzard of katar bullets and no less than twenty lances (although he took one right in the back --- and he was very thankful that he didn't feel physical pain any longer) before a furious Marluxia blocked his way.

"Sheesh!" Sora yelled frustratedly. "Out of my way!"

"As if," number Eleven growled, and brought down his scythe on Sora. He dodged it easily and threw a Stirke Raid at him, making the Graceful Assassin crouch low to dodge it. Sora took the advantage and used Marluxia as leverage to leap over Lexaeus and Vexen, landing on the floor and resuming his sprint to Xemnas.

_Pssh. Stupid Nobodies._

"You got that right," he murmured as he knocked aside another blizzard, this time of kunais, a shower of razor-sharp cards (of which fifteen got lodged in random parts of his back --- that would've hurt like hell) and sakura petals, ran through a pillar of ice-cold water (and almost got knocked out by the dozens of water forms waiting for him to go through), and dodged two spinning chakrams alight with fire.

Finally, his way was clear.

Unfortunately, his Other seemed to think otherwise.

"Roxas," he growled. "Out of the way."

"Sorry, no dice," the blonde replied mischievously.

"This is getting stupid," Sora huffed, straightening up with the Dark Keyblade held loosely in his right hand.

Roxas nodded in agreement. He actually seemed to be enjoying this as he crossed Oathkeeper and Oblivion above his head. Electricity crackled between the intricate metalworked blades and he yelled one word.

"_Light!_"

A circle of light traced itself on the marble floor and pillars of blinding white shot up. Roxas tossed his Keyblades into the air as tongues of white flame emblazoned themselves on the hem of his black hood and coat. He waved his gloved hands and drew the Keyblades towards his palms, but he didn't hold the handles themselves. They just sort of...floated over his palms. The light faded into two small orbs trailing behind the blonde as he hovered a good foot above the slightly-rubbled floor.

"Ah_huh_," Sora said boredly. "Final Form, Roxas-style."

"That's a nice name," Roxas shot back just as boredly, golden spikes of hair swaying slightly as he bobbed up and down.

"_Anti_form, Sora-style, sounds _so_ much better, though," he muttered, raising his own Dark Keyblade above his head. "Watch, Roxas."

- - - - - - - - - - -

Roxas blinked and raised an eyebrow as he leant slightly forward, eyeing his Nobody through narrowed eyes. They were in the rather calm middle of the chaos the Heartless had created --- the Neoshadows were now holding the rest of the Organization back, and also keeping them from reaching Xemnas, who was in the middle of a large circle of Heartless himself.

They had to protect the Superior, whatever the cost. For Roxas knew that once Sora got Xemnas' shard, he and Naminé were next on his hitlist. And frankly, he'd rather not have a ruthless killer after him and the memory witch's blood. Or shard of heart, in this case.

Sora pointed the Dark Keyblade upwards, and closed his eyes.

_"Kingdom Hearts!_" he bellowed. A six-foot Heartless symbol traced itself in blue light around his feet, and Roxas suddenly had the feeling of giddiness he had felt when he first faced Riku in the World that Never Was. Sora was doing the same his best friend had done: he was summoning the power of darkness.

Roxas felt even more giddy with adrenalin. He controlled the element of light. Clashing with darkness was what he was existing for.

"_Hear your Key's call!_"

He gasped in astonishment as the Hall was plunged into darkness momentarily, until the white illuminating Materia did its work. Kairi yelled for Roxas to be careful, and he heard Riku curse. Vehemently.

Roxas stole a glance at the windows, and what he saw took his breath away.

Kingdom Hearts glowed, not with warm white light, but with an eerie blue one. The heart-moon itself was ebony-black, matching the night around it. In fact, the only indication Kingdom Hearts was there was its outline traced in blue.

"Oh, hell," he managed to stammer, before he tore his eyes away from the sight and looked at Sora once again. A slight gale seemed to whirl around him, making the spikes of his hair gently float upwards and his clothes ripple in an invisible wind. The Dark Keyblade glowed with the same dark illumination of Kingdom Hearts.

"_Unlock your door!_"

Sora's eyes snapped open as blue light engulfed him, blinding Roxas for a split second. He had no warning as the fallen Keyblade Master suddenly rushed out and slashed down his Keyblade. Roxas flipped backwards to avoid the next slash, teeth gritted with pain at the large gash running across his chest. It actually cut off his hood's cords and the silver necklace. The tubular beads bounced on the floor, stained with crimson.

"Damn," he cursed, getting down on one knee and muttering a Curaga. Sora stared at him from across the Hall, glee reflected in both his eyes. Roxas forced a laugh. "Gee, Sora. That was a good lightshow. Too bad it didn't do anything except make your Keyblade sparkle."

Sora feigned hurt as he pressed his clawed hand to his forehead. "Aww, Rox. Don't be so impatient; I wasn't even done yet."

He couldn't resist the urge to widen his eyes as the darkness suddenly exploded away from Kingdom Hearts, leaving it in its normal glowing yellow. The windows of the Hall shattered as Sora raised his Keyblade once more. Ribbons of darkness shot to the 'Blade, disappearing into it. The brunet's Heartless eye glowed with an even brighter yellow, and, Roxas realized with a shiver running down his spine, that the eyes of the Heartless around them pulsed with the same yellow light.

He staggered to his feet, and his blood ran cold when he realized what Sora had done.

He had bound the Heartless to himself, and opened his soul to darkness in turn. It gave him control over the massive power that was the darkness of Kingdom Hearts, but it drastically cut off the chances of turning back to the light.

Sora was gone.

Sky-blue eye was still there, but the light in it had disappeared completely. Like it was even there, but the cheerfulness, the happiness, the innocence was gone.

He smirked as he tapped the Keyblade on his shoulder. "Like it?"

"_Love_ it," Roxas said sarcastically before charging forwards, orbs of light trailing behind him. Sora dodged easily and leapt over him, but Roxas quickly whipped around and waved a hand towards the brunet. Pillars of light burst out from the floor, annihilating Neoshadows where they erupted. None caught Sora, however, as the fallen Keyblade Master quick-ran, weaving between the Heartless and Organization XIII rapidly.

He rose upwards and narrowed his eyes; Sora had disappeared into the Heartless mob. "Oh, come _on_, stop hiding like the coward that you are!" he yelled frustratedly.

"Coward I might be, but I'm an _intelligent_ coward."

Roxas froze as he heard Sora whisper in his ear, and he felt the cold steel of the blunt end of the Dark Keyblade crash against the back of his head. Spots blinked before his eyes as he spun around to face the brunet, but he had already pushed off the wall and was now standing at the railing of the balcony. Roxas felt warm liquid trickle down the back of his neck and into the hood of his coat.

"Why you --- " he dropped down to the ground and threw a Blizzaga at him, but Sora jumped on the railing, barely missing the razor-sharp ice shards. "So low! Why didn't you kill me then!"

" 'cause I need your shard last!" Sora yelled back, leaping and bringing down his Keyblade. Roxas was ready for this and he crossed his Keyblades at the last second, catching the Keyblade in between.

He grinned at the bewildered look on his Nobody's face. "Sora, you stupid idiot."

The brunet furrowed his eyebrows as he struggled to wrench his Keyblade free. "Let it go, Roxas!"

"I'm not as stupid as you!"

Sora yelled once more as he swung his legs up and kicked Roxas square in the chest, effectively sending him clear across the Hall as he did with number Eight earlier and releasing the hold on the Dark Keyblade.

He shook his head to clear the spots now seeming to take permanent residence in his corneas. He was now lying awkwardly across a pile of marble rubble, and he quickly got to his feet. Sora looked royally pissed off right now, and Roxas couldn't help but grin. Widely.

"This is getting stupid!" Sora repeated, charging once again.

"You finally noti--" Roxas didn't get the chance to finish his sentence as hordes of Neoshadows suddenly jumped him. Sora had stopped a meter short of Roxas and brought down his hand instead in a signal for the Heartless to attack him.

"Sheesh!" he heard Sora groan once again in frustration. "You're so freakin' persistent, Roxas!"

- - - - - - - - - - -

Sora took one last look at where Roxas was supposedly was, under a five-something platoon of Neoshadows. That'll keep him busy for a while, until he took Xemnas' shard back.

He was about to turn to face the silver-haired Nobody when he looked back over his shoulder. "Uh, guys."

All the Heartless looked up to face him, yellow eyes wide and glowing curiously. "_Sir Sora?_" the topmost one asked.

"Don't kill him, okay? I'll do that myself," he said, tilting his head thoughtfully.

_"Sure, whatever you say,"_ the Neoshadow replied, and they resumed keeping the Key of Destiny from getting out from under them.

_This is stupid, buddyboy. Why didn't you get your heart from my control? It's bound to come back to you, anyway!_

Sora shook his head and scanned the hall for the Superior. "Yeah, it'll come back, but it's still incomplete! The remaining shards will refuse to come near me, and I'll end up stuck with only twelve shards."

_Oh. Oh yeah._

He rolled his eyes, and spotted Organization XIII's leader in the process. Sora sprinted through the battle and ended up yelling for the Neoshadow who was attacking Xemnas to get out of the way. Finally, he stood before the Nobody. They started circling each other.

"Wielder." Xemnas acknowledged once more, hovering above the floor together with his Sorcerers.

"Xemnas," he greeted back, and with a snap of his fingers, called a Darkside.

The platinum-haired Superior made the mistake of gawking.

Sora sprinted forward and plunged the Dark Keyblade in the general region of Xemnas' heart. He grinned when he saw the shard of heart float out, and when the lump that was Roxas under a heap of Heartless collapsed. He portalled back out of the chaos and into the path right before the entrance to the Proof of Existence, meaning to say, the front of the Hall. He called his Heartless who were attacking Organization XIII back once again and told them to regroup and strategize among themselves.

It was highly amusing, to say the very least.

"Two more to go!" he cheered, tapping the Dark Keyblade on his shoulder.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Hell no you don't!" Axel roared, and Organization XIII sprinted to position, making a makeshift wall of defence between her and Roxas (who was lying sprawled on the marble floor) and Sora. "You're not taking Roxas and Naminé!"

Naminé gratefully smiled inwardly, but she gritted her teeth and flexed her Keyblades into a fighting stance, left foot forward together with left hand clutching memory-wrought Oathkeeper, and right foot behind aligned with Oblivion.

She peered out of the corner of her eye. Roxas slowly got to his feet, but not without a few miserable failures to get up. He was bleeding out of the back of his head, and he was clutching his chest with a pained expression on his face. He hovered to her back with the same expression pasted on his features, and his Keyblades twirled impatiently. He looked pathetically injured.

She whipped her head forwards to face the Heartless which were now slowly forming a circle around them. Riku and Kairi ran to their side.

"You guys ready?" Kairi said stoically, brandishing her flowery Keyblade.

Naminé could actually feel the emotional pain overflow and radiate off the Princess of Heart. Naturally. She was going to kill off her Keyblade Master. Riku threw a Megalixir upwards, and it burst into a fountain of potion, revitalizing them. She took deep, calming breaths as the Heartless increased in number, and, if she wasn't mistaken, the Neoshadows were watching them curiously. "I was born ready," he muttered.

"Heck, if I was even born...anyway," Roxas' voice was light and eerily calm. Slayers suddenly rose up from the floor and joined the other Nobody ranks. "...I'm ready."

She felt the back of her neck prickle, and _they _caught each other stealing glances at the other. Naminé quickly tore her gaze away, feeling anger bubble up in her once more. This is getting insanely frustrating! "Ready as I ever will be," she ground out, feeling stupid.

Sora suddenly chuckled, and his laughter echoed around the Hall. It made shivers run up her spine. "Only time I've seen you guys so organized and united. Heh, finally, an organized Organization. Maybe something good came out of this after all. Of course, it's good for _me_."

"Heartless," he paused, and cast one last look around, before pointing his Keyblade in a targeting gesture.

"..._Attack_."

And the world exploded into chaos.

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

Roxas gritted his teeth and brought his Oathkeeper downwards, making a Neoshadow dissipate into particles of darkness. Another Neoshadow crawled forward and tried to knock him off his feet, nearly making him fall over to Naminé, who was working her Keyblades in the same way. He slashed at the Neoshadow and sighed, casting a Curaga on the both of them.

Naminé still ignored him, slashing against the Neoshadows on her side. They had been fighting for what seemed an eternity now, back-to-back with the blonde girl as they fended off Heartless simultaneously. And what frustrated him that they did it _wordlessly_.

He paused for a second and gazed over his shoulder, staring at how she moved. He had never known before last afternoon that the girl had it in her to move so stealthily and gracefully at the same time. Her memory-wrought Oblivion crackled with darkness as it sliced through yet another Heartless.

As he stared a Neoshadow rose unexpectedly near her right sandal and took a swipe at her calf, making her cry out in pain. Blood bloomed out of the thin slashes and trailed down her ankles as she knelt on one knee, panting, with her Oathkeeper to support her as she did.

Another Neoshadow tensed and lashed out with a claw aimed at her neck.

Roxas yelled and dismissed his Keyblades in a split second, arms moving up to push Naminé away. "Naminé, look out!"

She stiffened and looked over her shoulder at him, and her eyes widened in horror as she her gaze strayed to somewhere to his left. "No, _you_ look out!" she screamed. She dismissed her own Keyblades and spun around to face him, placing her hands on his shoulders and pushing him away with brute strength.

What stunned Roxas was that she was crying; clear ribbons of tears traced down from her cerulean blue eyes and down her porcelain-white skin. "Wha --- "He stole a glance at the direction Naminé had looked at, and his words were cut short.

The Dark Keyblade was spinning towards him in a Strike Raid seconds ago, and Naminé had pushed him out of the way.

She silently took the Keyblade in the chest as its momentum threw her up into the pillar behind them, and the Keyblade lodged itself in the marble, impaling Naminé there, a good thirty feet off the floor.

Roxas screamed.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"What on _earth?_" Kairi exclaimed, stopping for a moment.

Shivers ran up Riku's spine as he spun around to face in the direction of Roxas' scream. He had never heard a scream so anguished before, and, coming from somebody who wasn't supposed to feel, it was downright heartbreaking.

All the breath went out of him as he recognized the pale figure the Dark Keyblade had just pinned to a pillar.

Naminé.

Kairi fell to her knees and burst into tears.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Roxas could only stare in stunned horror as her shard of heart floated out and joined with his, making his fragmented heart a whole one. It should've hurt the most, but, somehow, the pain of remerging shards didn't affect him. Seeing Naminé stuck to a pillar --- with her blood slowly dripping down the marble --- like some kind of rag doll numbed his senses.

"Pssh," he heard Sora mutter. "I hate it when that happens."

The Dark Keyblade vanished into strands of darkness, probably Recalled by Sora. Naminé crumpled face-down to the floor at the base of the pillar in a shower of blood and ripped white cloth, and Roxas sprinted to her side with a speed he had never known to posess.

He gingerly turned her around and found her gasping softly, blood trickling down her ruined chest. Not only her chest, but..._everywhere_...Oh, Creator, Nobody or not, the injury was almost impossible to look at directly. It would take her some time, maybe a month or so, to recover from losing her shard and getting stabbed by a three-foot long piece of metal, but then she'll be good as ---

"What the...!" Roxas gasped as trails of darkness rose up from Naminé, first a thin thread, now ribbons of satin black.

She was fading.

"No! Naminé!" he whispered, cradling her head in his arm and wrapping an arm around her waist, not caring if he was stained with her blood. "No! You can't be fading!"

It suddenly hit him. Naminé...Naminé was barely a Nobody herself, having been born of a Somebody without a corresponding Heartless. That made her more powerful that an ordinary Nobody, but much more fragile. And with an injury like this...

_No no no Roxas don't think about that! No! NO!_

Strands of darkness continued to rise from her, and everything was tuned out for Roxas except for the sound of her ragged breathing and her pale white figure, and the blood pounding in his temples as tears he never knew could fall overflowed. He traced a shaky finger down her jawbone as his tears started to drip down his face and onto her white sundress, mixing with her own blood.

Were Nobodies supposed to be able to cry?

But then again, he had Sora's heart now. He finally understood what he had meant by the burden of having a heart.

"Hold on, Nam," he breathed brokenly, knowing that his words would do nothing to save her. Magic won't work on her; curative magic doesn't work on somebody who's just existing. "Just hold on!"

She coughed up blood, and turned her cerulean blue orbs, still streaming with tears, to him. "You...Roxas...are the biggest idiot..." Naminé choked.

Roxas couldn't help but smile a pained smile. "Naminé..."

She smiled back weakly. "...I have ever...fallen...in love with."

Her cerulean blue eyes glazed over, and Roxas felt her go limp in his arms. More ribbons of darkness rose up from her body, more and more until it concealed her from his view ---

He watched, stunned beyond words, as she faded completely, leaving strands of darkness in their wake.

And then too, the strands faded away.

"Naminé..." he whispered, not really comprehending what just happened, staring at his empty bloodstained arms and empty tear-stained gloves. "Naminé..."

Tears streamed down freely his face now. his eyelids burning with the hot saltiness.

"Naminé..." he repeated, chest heaving with a pain he had never known before. It was more excruciating than the pain of remerging, and Roxas knew now that it was the pain of losing a loved one.

A _dearly beloved_ one.

"_NAMINÉ!_" he screamed as he had never screamed before, throwing his head back and beseeching to the high heavens her name, her name that sounded so right on his tongue and her lips that molded so perfectly with his and her pale white hand that saved him from falling--

"_You..._" Roxas stood up, fists clenching painfully, _making_ his fists clench painfully to forget the pain of Naminé fading away...he turned around slowly to face Sora, who was eyeing him now with great interest.

The brunet shrugged, tapping the Dark Keyblade over his shoulder. "Hey, don't look at me. I was aiming at _you_."

"_You bastard,_" he could barely breathe with anger. "You _goddamned bastard."_

_"_I can stand you trying to hurt _me_." Roxas swallowed painfully, slowly raising his eyes to meet with Sora's, every word gathering strength and anger. "I can stand you trying to hurt my _family. _But killing Naminé..."

Sora boredly leapt up in the air and started attacking a Sorcerer.

Roxas bit his lip and forced himself to stop crying. Crying never did anything. Not crying numbed the pain. Anguish and anger and pain swirled in a haze of thoughts as his eyes followed Sora's movements.

In a split second he summoned his Keyblades and wielded them furiously at his sides. "_I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" _he bellowed, and he threw Oblivion out with all his strength and accuracy and fervent prayers for the only Nobody he had ever loved so deeply in a desperate Strike Raid.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Kairi saw it coming.

She knew it would happen.

And she knew what she was going to do.

She sprinted to Sora's front and jumped.

Guilt filled her, guilt flooded her, but she closed her eyes, and waited for the inevitable, repeating over and over to herself that it would all be over soon.

Riku screamed.

- - - - - - - - - - -

_watashi wa anata o aishite imasu. - I love you._

-

:x

Ahuhh. That's why it's entitled Nobody Break.

Don't kill me.

Such a cute cliffie, although I know you must all have an idea what happens next.

read&review. please?

flames are okay.

waiiit. is it just me, or is something wrong with I'm not recieving any review alerts, review replies, y'know, the works. and it kinda sucks...


	31. Ikanaide

**A/N: **OKAY. It seems that some people have...issues with Naminé dying.

I am sorry, but that is my plot. And the genre of this fic is TRAGEDY/ROMANCE. Okay? Okay? I would also like to point out that I am also a Namixas fan.

SHEESH, GUYS.

If you have a Nobody Break, of course, you gotta have a Trinity Break. Yay.

I've given this a LOT of thought. 'cause ya hafta save the best for last, ne?

Sorry. This one's a bit short.

**Disclaimers: **Kingdom Hearts (c) Square Enix.

You Don't Miss It 'til It's Gone (c) Numina-Namine.

- - - - - - - - - -

**I**_ka_**nai**de

- - - - - - - - - -

-

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**T **r** i **n** i **t** y B **r **e** a **k**

**-**

**-**

Kairi watched, and braced herself as the Oblivion spun in its deadly circle towards her.

Her life flashed before her eyes; a memory of a young brunet boy finding her washed up on the white sand shores of Destiny Islands. A door to darkness--her heart finding refuge in Sora's. She restoring _his_ heart after _his_ sacrifice. Getting separated--watching Kingdom Hearts return the stars and the Islands, but keeping its Key for itself. Forgetting him, and then memories rushing back. Their reunion, the warm feeling of his embrace.

The Oathkeeper returned...all memories of the half-Heartless she now sacrificed her life to save; the half-Heartless now smirking behind her as she blocked Roxas' oncoming Strike Raid with her body. It was a fitting thing to do--Sora deserved so much more from her; she who had been the one to shatter his heart unmercifully, blinded as she was with pain and hatred on that warm Halloween Eve.

She imagined the thalasssa shells, and she managed to smile, remembering the old legend of safety at sea, remembering a time when she wholeheartedly believed in paradise skies and the shrieks of seagulls and untroubled seas; in a time when Heartless and Nobodies were unheard of; in a time of _peace_.

She remembered that the Oathkeeper had something of a star shape, and something else came to her mind.

_I won't be able to share a paopu with him after all..._

She stared dead ahead, the ominous whirring of the Oblivion Keyblade filling her ears. That's when Kairi remembered something--something that she'll never forget for the rest of her life: Roxas had _two _Keyblades.

Beryl eyes looked on in horror as Roxas concentrated, his cerulean-blue eyes darkening with the intensity of an impending storm. He called back the ebony Oblivion--disappearing in a haze of darkness and reappearing in his right hand--, stopped for a split second, and swung out, with his left hand, the angelic Oathkeeper; the silver blade spinning rapidly towards her.

_Roxas finally learned how to Recall!_

Kairi, by that instant of time, was far too close to the ground to block the Keyblade of Light--Roxas had calculated his swing so that she had no chance to block the Oathkeeper. She hit the floor with an icy numbness as she stared up; the Keyblade caught Sora by the chest, and light exploded.

"_Roxas! NOOO!_" She screamed, but by that time it was too late.

Oathkeeper had found its mark perfectly.

----------------------

They say when you die, your whole life flashes in front of your eyes.

However, in Sora's case, he had died about 287 days, 23 hours, 46 minutes, and 34.98 seconds ago, on that warm summer night, by the Dark Keyblade held in his shaking hands. So it's politically incorrect to say that his _life_ flashed before his eyes--let's just say his existence did that.

Antiform screamed; Roxas had done his final job: to take control of Sora's Antiform at all costs. Even at the cost of his life. Of course, the fact that he and Antiform killed Naminé earlier must've had some effect, but still.

Sora felt his Heartless shatter into inanimate strands of darkness, and he knew what it meant for his own existence.

In time, the darkness would reform in Kingdom Hearts, but by then it would have no corporeal body to inhabit.

...meaning the realm of light would be safe from _his_ Antiform.

He found the situation funny--everything seemed to be in slow motion, Organization XIII's mouths hanging open, Riku staring at him in disbelief, Kairi missing the Oathkeeper, Roxas' cerulean blue eyes, born of _Sora_, boring into his own.

Sora knew Roxas keeps his promises. As he fell to the marble floor he mouthed a heartfelt 'thank you', and the blonde nodded his head, hand raised up as he caught the blood-ribboned Oathkeeper.

He hit the cold white marble floor with a peace he had not felt for a long time--he was _free_.

For freedom, and the safety of the realm of light, he had paid a very heavy price.

His existence.

Tears, _finally _crystal clear tears, not blood-tainted ones, fell into tiny little drops on the floor as Kairi, recovering from her shock, scrambled to his side.

---------------------

Kairi watched, frozen, as Sora carved a graceful arc into the air as the Oathkeeper sliced through him; right where his heart should have been. As the light resonated throughout the hall, all Heartless in the vicinity dissipated into dust. The black taint that covered half of the fallen Keyblade Master faded away into the still night air, leaving his skin as pale--and as pure as before, and sky blue eyes stared sightlessly into her own.

Crimson trails of blood traced their deathly trails on the pristine marble floors as he hit the ground with an almost cruel _thump_.

"_Sora!_" she cried as she frantically crawled over to his side and cradled his head in her arms, in imitation of Roxas saying goodbye to Naminé earlier.

Ro_xas_.

Tears started to stream forth as she looked over her shoulder and screamed at the blonde number Thirteen with hysterical anger. "Roxas! _Why?_" her voice broke. "_Why did you have to do this?_"

He stepped forward, swinging the dripping Oathkeeper over his shoulder, and tapping the Oblivion on the marble floor--marking the Castle That Never Was indelibly with Sora's blood. "He deserved it," Roxas spat, every syllable dripping with utmost hatred.

"_He deserved it?"_ She screamed once more, even louder. "For crying out loud, he gave you a _heart_, Roxas!!!"

"He _killed_ my heart!" he roared back, tears spilling over stormy-blue eyes. "_He killed Naminé!_" With those words the Key of Destiny turned his back on her and Sora, walking heavily with bloodstained Oathkeeper trailing scarlet on the white floor.

"How _could_ you..." She trailed off, emotion choking her next words. "Ro--"

"Hey..."

Roxas stopped short and whirled around. She gave an involuntary gasp as Sora's _warm_ fingers traced her jaw, gently turning her face towards him. She immediately placed her own hand over his, savoring his touch. "Shhh, Sora, save your strength..._Curaga_."

Soft green light flowed over the brunet Keyblade Master, and she looked on in desperation as it did just that--and only that. Somewhere in the back of her head she expected this; Healing Magic could only go so far. No magic was strong enough to bring back somebody who was already at death's door--none had been known to do that.

He shook his head slightly, clear sky-blue eyes staring up sadly. "I don't _have_ strength left, Kai."

"No! Don't say that!" Kairi cried, bowing her head, watching sightlessly as her own tears sparkled on Sora's crown necklace. She wrapped her arm around his neck tighter, struggling to understand _why_ this had to happen. "Just don't...don't let go, I'll save you somehow...!"

"I do the saving around here," he smiled weakly, a feeble attempt at that goofy grin that he was known for.

"You idiot," she murmured, laughing and crying at the same time--then overwhelming guilt filled her as Sora's breathing grew markedly ragged.

_This is all my fault._

Kairi Dalmasca had never felt pain such as _this_ before. The guilt. The sorrow. The anguish of knowing that _she_ was the primary cause; _she_ had shattered his heart, that _she_ was the reason why Sora was bleeding and dying and lying in her arms with his sky blue eyes staring up at her in concern -_oh God of all things- _loving concern. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything, Sora! Don't let go, please, _don't!_"

"I forgave you a long time ago," he coughed, blood spilling out of the corner of his lips. Kairi's finger trembled as she wiped the drop of crimson away, and her other hand squeezed his involuntarily.

"Well you _have_ to hear my formal apology! You _have _to live! You _have_ to get through--"

Sora stopped her by raising a shaking finger and pressing it to her lips. "I'm already dead, remember...?"

"That's not funny!" She said through gritted teeth, shaking her head, redwine locks swaying in the nonexistent breeze.

He smiled once again.

She put her head against his crimson-splattered chest and sobbed, the absence of a heartbeat fueling her grief even more.

This wasn't happening. This was unreal. Sora couldn't be dying--they were supposed to live happily ever after! They were supposed to have kids who'd annoy Riku until he went crazy! They were supposed to find a way to give Organization XIII a heart of their own! They, the Keyblade Master and the seventh Princess of Heart was supposed to protect the realm of light! They were supposed to be _together forever!_

Fate is cruel.

"Riku?" she heard Sora rasp out, and she lifted her head from his bleeding chest, half of her face smeared with his bright red life-blood.

The platinum-haired Wielder was awake, and was staring at them in shock, aquamarine eyes wide. "Oh God, Sora, Kairi..." he trailed off, apparently at a loss of words to describe the situation.

"T-take care of her."

"_Sora!_" she cried once more, but Riku propped himself up on his elbows and nodded gravely, trying and miserably failing to return Sora's feeble smile.

"You can count on me."

"Riku! No!" she said. "Stop encouraging him! I won't need you because _Sora's_ going to be the one who protects me! Right! _Right?_" She turned to Sora's face, and she saw no affirmation in his rapidly-darkening sky blue eyes.

"Don't leave me, Sora," she wept. "...Please?"

Hope was something on short supply today, and right about now, they ran out of the warm, fuzzy stuff, leaving only the coldness that was despair.

"I love you, Kairi," he whispered so softly that Kairi had to force herself to stop sobbing just to be able to hear his words. She shook her head fiercely.

"I love you too, Sora," she breathed brokenly, her voice pleading. "Don't leave me. You're _not_ leaving me, don't you _dare_ leave me!"

Darkness, strands of darkness were starting to rise from the cold, hard marble floor, surrounding them. Kingdom Hearts was calling its Key back to where it came from. Sora gave her hand one final squeeze, and Kairi felt her heart shatter. It was a very painful feeling--and she knew how that feeling pushed Sora to what he was now.

"Sorry I failed you, Kai--"

He didn't have a chance to finish saying her name as his eyes fluttered closed; hiding clear sky blue eyes that would never open again forever. That hurt more than the pain any spell or weapon could inflict.

"_Sora_," she cried uselessly. "_Don't leave me..._"

And Sora Hikari, like all Nobodies do when they are supposed to die, faded away into the light of Kingdom Hearts.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Stunned was somewhat of an understatement here, as Riku watched his best friend fade into tiny little sparkles of light, leaving the three-foot Kingdom Key in Kairi's shaking arms.

Sora _faded_. He wasn't coming back. Ever.

The realm of light had lost a Keyblade Master.

Outside, it started to rain.

"Uhn!"

Summoning his Keyblade, Riku painfully propped himself up into a semblance of a sitting position as he searched for the source of what sounded like a muffled vehement exclamation. His aquamarine eyes narrowed as his gaze settled on Roxas, who was partly hidden behind the now-silent Organization XIII.

He fought the gasp he was struggling to release when he saw what surprised the blonde. He had just turned his head in time to see sparkles of light, very much like the ones Sora faded into, coalesce above Thirteen's head and fade _into_ him. Roxas shook visibly and he dropped onto his knees, both his Keyblades fading away before they clattered on the floor. Axel crouched down beside him concernedly and put an arm around his shoulders as they portalled out. One by one, the Organization portalled away, leaving their Superior as he lingered behind.

If he wasn't mistaken, he had just seen Roxas become a complete human.

"Riku," Xemnas' unsteady voice jolted him out of his thoughts.

He swiveled his head in the platinum-haired Nobody's direction. "Xemnas."

"You heard the Wielder," he said softly, his amber irises flickering into the now hysterical redhead's direction. Kairi was sobbing loudly, her tears running down the length of the bloodstained Keyblade, slowly cleansing it of the scarlet liquid. "Take care of her."

Riku nodded.

Xemnas portalled out.

He took a deep breath. All the loose ends had just been tied up: Kairi had Naminé to control her dark side, and Roxas had Sora to control his. The frayed ends just wasn't tied up in the way that should've left them living happily ever after.

Naminé was gone.

Sora was gone.

He shuffled over to Kairi, who finally dismissed the Keyblade, probably having seen enough of the huge Keys for her lifetime. Her shoulders heaved with a grief Riku knew would never fade away completely.

Wordlessly, he put a comforting arm around her shaking shoulders, and she clutched to it tightly, tears streaming down her ghostly pale visage.

Riku bit his lip, and finally let his tears escape.

They cried together, for her, mourning for the loss of the boy she truly loved, for him, mourning for the loss of his best friend--the one who sacrificed everything for the realm of light.

Sora Hikari. On that stormy night, in the World That Never Was, his name was permanently etched in history.

But more importantly, his legacy was forever etched into the hearts that he had touched.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Roxas clutched both hands to his chest, staggering, needing Axel to steady him by the elbows as they walked the length of a white corridor. He actually had no idea where they were going, nor did he care. All he wanted was to wake up. Maybe all of this was just a very stupid, very long nightmare, and that any minute now, he was going to wake up.

He hoped to the high heavens that he'd wake up.

Sadly, the pain shooting through his ribcage kind of pounded into his head that this, all of this, was excruciatingly real.

"Roxas, please," Axel cajoled, supporting his right elbow as they walked. "Don't keep it in."

"I'm okay, Axel," he growled back, trying to wrench himself free of his grip, although he knew he'd collapse on the floor without the pyromaniac's support. "I'm okay."

Larxene was suddenly at his other side, holding his left arm up. "Don't be stupid."

"I'm not being stupid."

"Yes, dude, you are," Xigbar's voice washed over him, and Roxas looked back over his shoulder to see the eyepatched Nobody staring at him curiously. "Hey, we may be Nobodies again, but we're not completely insensitive."

Beside him, Demyx nodded in agreement.

Roxas bit his lip, and jerked forwards, surprising Larxene and Axel and making them let go of him. "I'm okay."

"No you aren't," number Twelve sighed, exasperated.

A very uncomfortable silence, during which Roxas could hear the slight sniffling of Marluxia. She had grown very close to the Graceful Assassin the year before; even if Marluxia had admitted he was using the flaxen-haired memory witch. Naminé had forgiven him readily, saying that it was in a Nobody's nature to be manipulative, anyway.

"Roxas --- " Axel started.

He suddenly whipped around, the taste of bile rising up his throat. He forced it down and gritted his teeth as he faced his fellow Organization members. His bloodstained fists clenched tight once again. "You don't understand how I feel, so stop it. Stop trying."

Marluxia coughed, and Axel glared at him.

Roxas swallowed. "You don't know how it feels. I just killed Sora. And I just killed the only one I had ever loved, Naminé."

"You didn't --- " that was Demyx.

"Yes, I did. If she hadn't saved me, she would've lived. That's as good as killing her myself."

"But it's not the same," Xemnas cut in, stepping forward and crossing his arms. "Roxas, if you haven't killed Sora, we would've faded by now, and darkness would spread over the Worlds. You're a hero now."

"I sure don't feel like one. More like a murderer," Roxas looked up into the face of the Superior, and Xemnas' eyes softened visibly. He turned away, boots softly pounding on the floor, walking forward into someplace he didn't really care to know.

"Roxas, self-pity would do you no good," the silver-haired Nobody called after him. "It's already done. You can't turn back time."

"Go away," he muttered, drawing up his hood, a lump forming in his throat with every painful step he took away from the black-coated figures standing behind him. "Just leave me alone."

He was withdrawing into his shell once more; the empty and lifeless shell he had been when he joined Organization XIII. He was fed up with the world and all its truths; he was fed up with this impossible quest to get their own hearts.

In fact, after what had happened, he wasn't sure that he really did want to have a heart. With hearts came emotions, with emotions came happiness, with happiness came love, and with love came pain.

"No we won't," Axel said matter-of-factly, walking up to him and seizing his left arm. "Don't keep it in, got it memorized? Your face'll get frozen in a scowl that way."

"Go away," Roxas said weakly, but he slowed down walking and finally stopped.

"Yeah, Rox," the pyro murmured, ignoring Roxas' attempt to push him away, as he turned the blonde boy's shoulders to face him. Roxas looked up into his best friend's teal eyes, and saw only sincerity reflected in them. He dropped his gaze and shut his own stormy blue orbs.

"Let it go."

And with that, Roxas broke down and cried.

- - - - - - - - - - -

_ikanaide - don't go._

_-_

Auugh. The drama. It kills me. -dies-

Kinda makes you feel all warm and fuzzy all over. Warm and fuzzy and sad. Awww.

So. Any last words?

_You killed me off! -sniffs- What the hell did I do?_

Duh. You practically killed Sora.

_Buddyboy did it himself -points; Sora snarls and tackles him to the ground-_

Uh. Roxas. Say something.

_-lifts eyes and stares emotionlessly- I'm going to kill you._

Uhm... Such nice words...

_I'll help you, Roxas. -nocks crossbow and aims it at numinanaminé-_

Like hell yeah Kairi. You were the one who got the ball rolling.

_...shut up._

Leave me a review, and I'll get back to you.

Flamers can go ahead.

**skitty 2004**, your Larxene/Zexion history oneshot should be up this week. Should. Heheh.

**Daniel Ramage, Gray-Rain Skies **and **Red Wings**, you people made me smile. The whole day. I even went to sleep smiling. Like yeah.

Awww...Halloween's just 'round the corner...

-dances-


	32. Goodbye

**A/N: ** SERIOUSLY. Is there something up with 'cause I'm not getting any e-mail. Aaaand I'm getting kinda frustrated...

Anyway.

**skitty 2004**, your twoshot is called **Look Not Back**, and I'll upload it maybe halfday after I upload this. I'm still reading through the thing.

Aww. Yer reviews made me feel all WARM and FUZZY. Yeppers. XD

The guys who reviewed but still didn't get a review reply? Sorry, I'll do those later. X3

This chapter clears some things up.

I _do _recommend listening to _Let Me Go_, by 3 Doors Down --- it really captures the spirit of the story. _Iris, _by the Goo Goo Dolls, also fits it.

Enjoy!

**Disclaimers: **Kingdom Hearts (c) Square Enix and Disney.

You Don't Miss It 'til It's Gone (c) Numina-Namine.

Hikari (c) Utada Hikaru.

Dearly Beloved: Reprise (c) Kaoru Wada.

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Go_od**b**_**ye**

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**T **r** i **n** i **t** y L **i** m **i** t**

**N** o **b** o **d** y **L **i **m **i** t**

**-**_wasurenaide kudasai-_

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"_donna toki datte_

_zutto futari de--"_

King Mickey's hand flew upwards and groped in the darkness for his cellphone. Queen Minnie shifted beside him, murmuring incoherently. He groaned as his hand found the phone and automatically flipped it open; _who_ at this time of the morning would be in their right mind to call the King of Disney Castle?

It was an unlisted number, and he gritted his teeth. Whoever tried playing pranks on the _King_ would pay.

"Who is this?" he asked irritably, sitting up straight in the bed.

"King Mickey...don't you recognize my voice?"

He sat up even straighter. "Listen, whoever you are. Once I get this number traced, you shall know firsthand what I do to pranksters who call me up at two in the morning, trying to be smart-alecky with me."

"...you, of all people, should recognize who I am."

Mickey froze; it was a voice he knew very well. The owner of the voice no longer scared him; what frightened his Majesty was the _reason _that prompted the silver-haired Nobody to try and contact him at this ungodly hour.

"Xemnas," he breathed, not really wanting to wake up his wife. "Can't this wait until morning?"

Number One's voice sounded uneven; his breaths were coming in ragged gasps--such an unnatural thing to happen to someone who was usually cool, calm, and collected all the time. "I tried portalling in, but it seems that the Cornerstone has been reactivated..."

"Dear," Minnie said softly, voice muffled under the covers. "Who is it...?

Mickey cringed; he hated lying to his wife. "Uhn--"

"...I have to inform you; Sora's dead."

He shook his head violently, trying to wake himself up. He had heard Xemnas' last sentence wrong, that's for sure.

"What?" he asked into the mouthpiece.

"King Mickey," Xemnas said loudly and clearly, volume enough so that even Queen Minnie could hear it faintly. His wife looked at him interestedly as the Nobody cleared his throat. "Sora Hikari has completely Faded already; in Somebody terms, that means he's _dead_."

"--did I just hear that correctly?" she whispered, her ebony eyes staring at him fearfully as her hands involuntarily clutched the bedspread's edge. However, he was too stunned to comprehend anything other than Xemnas' trembling voice.

"S-sora's..._dead?"_

"Yes."

The phone slipped from his hands, bouncing off the mattress and onto the carpeted floor silently, the metallic sound muffled by the velvet material.

"King Mickey, I have lost one of my own too. Naminé... King Mickey, are you still there? King --- "

Mickey stared at it, unseeing, until a warm hand closed over his shoulder and a finger turned his face to his wife's. "Mickey, is it true? Sora... the boy's gone?"

His voice died in his throat as he locked eyes with the Queen--somehow, he knew that he had, indirectly, been the cause of the innocent Wielder's death. Well, screw indirectly...it was **_his_ **fault. This was a guilt that he'd carry until he the day he dies.

"Oh, oh, M-minnie," his voice cracked, and a tear slid down his face. "I-it's all my fault...oh God, it's all my fault..."

That night, the King wept, and after he did, the Queen wept for him. It _had_ to be done, for the good of all. A few lives had to be given up.

Sora had done an outstanding job.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"Roxas? You...wanted to see me?"

Kairi pushed the door slightly more open, her fingers resting lightly on the white painted wood. Roxas was hunched over the edge of his bed, shuffling his feet. At the sound of her voice he looked up, and Kairi wasn't surprised to see remains of dried tears on his face. She had been told that Roxas had been crying nonstop ever since the night before--not that she hasn't been doing that.

He cried over Naminé, she cried over Sora--both Nobodies gone and faded from existence.

She and Riku was still intruding on Organization XIII's hospitality; they planned to portal out a little bit later in the day, just in time for Destiny Islands' picture-perfect sunset. Xemnas had called and informed his Majesty; there was no doubt that the King would arrive very soon here in the Castle, and Kairi was in no mood to meet the King who had a hand in the disaster that was Sora's life.

"Hey," he said, halfheartedly raising a hand in greeting. Haunted eyes that had no more tears to cry stared at her. He motioned for her to close the door.

"What do you want?" she asked coldly, shutting the door but not taking up on his offer to sit beside him. Right now, Roxas was the person she liked the least--honestly, if she had her own Keyblade, she'd kill him. But no matter; her own hands would suffice--

Kairi gasped as the Oathkeeper coalesced into her clenched fist, the Keyblade answering her furious call. Roxas made a derisive noise as she immediately dismissed it. She had enough of the thalassa-keychained silver Key for about forever.

"You planning to do me in?" Roxas chuckled bemusedly, a noise that somehow infuriated her.

"If I could, I will, you _murderer_," she spat, whipping around and placing a clammy hand on the silver doorknob of XIII's threshold. "I don't know why the _hell_ I came here, anyway."

"You're wishing I'm the one who died, right?" he murmured in a hurt voice.

"Yes."

Roxas made a choking noise. Kairi turned the knob and pulled the door open. No matter how cruel that sounded, _that_ was what she felt.

"You _do _have to know...Sora planned that."

She spun on her heels and stared at the blonde in disbelief, shutting the door once more. "What do you mean _he planned it?_"

He shrugged. "He planned it."

"He _planned_ on dying?" she asked incredulously, honestly afraid of the answer. Maybe this was Sora's last laugh or something. Whatever joke it was, nobody was laughing.

Roxas tilted his head again, motioning that she come sit beside her. Taking a deep breath, Kairi crossed the room in a few unsteady steps and she seated herself, sinking into the white mattress. "Spill it," she ordered in a shaky voice.

He tore away his haunted gaze from her and suddenly found his hands very interesting. "We--we already talked about this, Kairi. It was bound to happen sooner or later. I just didn't think it would be _this_ soon."

"_What do you mean it was bound to happen sooner or later?"_ she screeched into his ear, probably shattering his eardrum, but she didn't regret that--Roxas didn't flinch.

"It...was a plan, you see. When he could still fight Antiform...we talked about whatever would happen if he went completely renegade. It sounded stupid back then, because we really believed he'd be able to fight it. Turned out he couldn't get it under control unless I completely remerged with him...the same's been happening to you and Naminé. So he knew this was going to happen--there was no way in hell he'd allow me to give up my existence."

Kairi kept silent, trying to process what Roxas was saying. Sora _knew_ that this would happen--if he did, why didn't he do anything to stop it?

"It was pointless to try and avoid it," he said sullenly. "So I promised that I'd kill him if he turned completely Heartless. He'd summon all the Heartless he could, binding them to himself. Then I'd hit him with the Oathkeeper, and because it's _my_ Keyblade of control...it'll destroy Antiform and all Heartless he had bound--"

"...and Sora with him," she breathed. Destroying Antifrom _was_ destroying Sora; one couldn't exist without the other. Dark can't exist without light, and vice versa. Stupid, stupid Sora. Hit two birds with one stone when he was supposed to hit only one.

"Yeah..." Roxas said flatly.

She shut her eyes tightly, fearing that if she opened them she'd never stop crying.

The idiot protected them from everything...including himself.

"...but that's not why I sent the Oathkeeper flying."

Kairi snapped her eyes open, flabbergasted. Roxas suddenly sat up straighter, and anger flashed in his eyes. "So _why_ then?"

"He deserved it. Naminé was innocent," he stated in a tight voice. "Naminé had nothing to do with this; her shard of heart was originally mine. Naminé had no reason to die..." Roxas' voice crumbled, and he put his head in his hands, hiding his face from view. But Kairi knew that he was crying.

"Uhm, Naminé didn't really die, Roxas," she said weakly. Sora didn't kill Naminé; Nobodies don't die. Antiform just released her shard of heart and...well, returned her to where she really was supposed to be--inside Kairi.

Roxas suddenly turned to her, cerulean eyes bright with hope as he clutched her shoulders tightly. "You mean, she just remerged with you?" he asked in a painfully hopeful voice.

Kairi had had enough of crushing hearts, but she couldn't avoid it. "Technically, she remerged with me..."

She remembered watching, stunned, as Naminé faded away in Roxas' arms. She didn't fade away; she faded _back_ into Kairi, but since she was supposed to be dead, the blonde had completely remerged. Naminé was there, but she was no longer Naminé. Maybe it was the way existing Others made it to be?

"...but Naminé's gone." She cringed as Roxas' face fell, and his shoulders slumped.

He heaved a sigh. "Just like _he_ did."

Her heart skipped a beat. "W-what?"

"Sora...since he was the Nobody, he...was the one who remerged with me," Roxas said sadly, clasping his hands. "And he's gone too."

She felt like screaming; life was so unfair. But one was to take what life had to offer and make the best of it; trouble was, she and Roxas had no idea how. The fact that Roxas looked just like Sora didn't help much. It didn't help at all.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"I call this meeting to order."

Roxas stared blankly at the Nobody symbol in the middle of their circle of white chairs, not really seeing it as he did.

Truth be told, he was still in shock.

Xemnas cleared his throat. "In the light of the recent events, we have to make a few..._reevaluations _of our plan to reclaim Kingdom Hearts. We have lost the only Keyblade Master who was willing to slay Heartless. We now have to find a way to slay Heartless without the Keyblade...and as we all know, number Thirteen absolutely refuses to associate with King Mickey."

"How about that Riku kid?" Axel asked, swinging a leg over his marble armrest. The pyro was torn between what to feel; Roxas could say that. Larxene was back, but Naminé was gone. Whatever it was, he was grateful that Axel kept his temperament under wraps.

Zexion snorted derisively. "Riku? Help us? You have got to be kidding me, Eight."

The Cloaked Schemer was still quite talkative...well, compared to his old self. It was an improvement, hopefully permanent.

"Or, how 'bout we all go to Disney Castle, " Xigbar suggested, "And just go force King Mick to replace Sora?"

Xemnas shot number Two a glare, and the eyepatched Nobody fell silent. "We'll research again--"

"...I know a way," Roxas said heavily, drawing back his hood. The silence that blanketed the room as he spoke was so quiet it was actually deafening. Eleven and a half pairs of eyes swung to face him.

He dropped his gaze.

"And," Xemnas asked, "That would be?"

He swallowed painfully, wondering how his felllow Nobodies would react. The idea had come to him only hours after Sora had merged with him completely --- it was ironic, actually. But he had to do what he has to do. Roxas lifted up his right hand before him and concentrated.

_Pain, sorrow, blood_

A collective gasp and more than a few vehement exclamations told him he had summoned it successfully. Scarlet metal met with cool ebony, ending with the shape of a heart with a deludingly razor-sharp edge. As a Keyblade Master, all Keyblades answered his call, if he concentrated enough. And here, clutched in his right black-gloved fist, rested the Dark Keyblade.

"Ro--" A panicked Axel started, but Roxas held up a hand. The pyro fell silent.

"It's simple. This," he twirled the Keyblade around, "releases hearts, doesn't it? The Knighting didn't affect that particular function. It still releases hearts as it did with Sora's. Now, if I stab myself," the Keyblade came to a stop, and he rested it on his lap, "It will release Sora's heart. Normally, a Nobody will be created, but I already have Sora as my Nobody. So Sora comes back. Antiform is gone, so I can't turn Heartless. The only thing left for me is to remerge," Roxas paused, biting his lip. "Completely. And so there."

"You're crazy," Demyx breathed.

Roxas frowned. "What? You people get Sora back, and once his Antiform returns, I'll be there to control it! It's a win-win situation!"

Marluxia looked like he would sorely like to give Roxas a good smack on the head with the blunt end of his scythe. "Win-win?" he asked disbelievingly.

He sunk back into his seat, and dismissed the Keyblade. "You guys'll get your own hearts! It's either me or all of them! Sora, Riku, Kairi, the realm of darkness and the realm of light, you Nobodies! While...while..." his voice broke. "Naminé and I...we'll be...we'll be..." he trailed off, and he put his hood up once more to hide the tears that threatened to overflow.

Xemnas shifted in his seat and sat straight up, gloved hands gripping tightly at the marble armrests. "I will not agree to that, Roxas! I _will_ not stand losing another Organiza--"

"That's what we are to you, aren't we!" Roxas bellowed suddenly. "We're just numbers to you! Members of this godforsaken group who're all the same, all people who want to use each other and kill and do anything to get their own hearts back! We're just _numbers_ to you, not existing _beings_, not _individuals_! You don't care about what we feel or _what we remember to feel, Xemnas! You just don't!"_

Breathing hard, he glared at the silver-haired Superior. Axel's mouth was hanging open, while Marluxia had on an approving smirk. Demyx and Xigbar alternated a helpless gaze between Roxas and Xemnas. The rest was staring at him as if they had never seen him before.

Xemnas sighed. "As I was saying, I will not stand losing another Organization member..."

"...and another friend."

Roxas stared.

The Superior palmed his forehead resignedly. "No matter what we are, no matter how we treat each other...we _are _still the closest each other has to a family. Whether you," he swept a gloved hand across the white room, "like it or not, we are all each other has. Roxas," he turned his amber eyes on him, "You're not the only one who has lost Naminé. All of us lost her. We are each other's hearts, in a sense --- we support the whole of our Organization. And we _will_ help you get through this, Roxas. You're," Xemnas paused, and if Roxas' wasn't mistaken, his gaze softened. "not alone. You're never alone. We'll never leave a great kid like you alone."

"I..." Roxas trailed off, stunned.

"Superior..." Axel whispered loudly.

"Well, the Superior's right," Xaldin said boredly, lances hovering around him. "No matter how much I hate it when either you or Axel or Demyx mess with my dreadlocks, you _are_ still something like family."

"Oh, pssh," Larxene rolled her eyes. "You people getting soft?"

Xemnas glanced at her bemusedly. "I do seem to remember Luxord telling me that you and a certain pyrokinetic kissed."

Number Twelve blushed furiously before hurling a kunai at where number Ten's head would be if he hadn't ducked. Axel seemed to find his hands very interesting. Vexen and Marluxia snickered, and Demyx burst into a wedding march whistle.

Roxas suddenly felt a warm feeling spread throughout his chest. Something like...like affection. Affection for these group of mistfits so much like him. Yes...he had acknowledged them as his family long ago. And for them, he was grateful.

"We'll help you get through this, Roxas," Xemnas said firmly. "We will."

"Aww!" Demyx gleefully screeched. "Group huuug!"

That meted him a lance in the arm, thrown by a glaring Xaldin. "You wish, kid."

Roxas looked around, and felt the corners of his mouth twitch upwards into the beginnings of a smile. Somehow, seeing them all in one place, laughing, smirking, staring, glaring, he didn't feel as alone anymore.

But still, he felt alone.

Sora's heart felt foreign, fluttering in his chest.

He knew his heart had faded away, together with the pale blonde Nobody, Naminé, on that fateful night. He owed his life to the girl, and it hurt all the more, because he had failed to protect her.

He failed his heart.

He failed Naminé.

Somehow, he knew it would never go away.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"Are you sure?"

She bobbed her head in reply, holding onto herself tightly. He knew she wanted to salvage any memory that his best friend had left behind, and _this_ was the most probable place that held the most of those.

Riku tilted his head slightly, and he sighed in resignation. Kairi watched, fascinated, as he summoned his Way to the Dawn, Heartless Keychain sparkling in the afternoon sun that streamed through the windows, creating patches of sun that dotted the hallway. Taking a deep breath, he set on breaking the unbreakable lock Sora had put on his bedroom--unbreakable to anything short of a Keyblade.

The lock appeared; a void of black shaped like a Keyhole. He aimed his Keyblade right at the center, and the satisfying _click_ of a keyhole being unlocked ensued. He stepped backward as Kairi reached gingerly for the brass doorknob. She twisted it clockwise, and the door opened with a resounding _creak_.

Biting her lip, she took a tentative step forward, as if frightened of what she would see inside the brunet Wielder's room. Riku sensed that this moment was for her and her alone to live--Riku had all the time in the world to go through his former housemate's room.

In time, their broken hearts would heal. They just didn't know how long it would take.

But for now, this respite, this refuge in Sora's own sanctuary would suffice. It would be a nice start in starting over. Today was only the afternoon after the incident...they had their whole lives ahead of them.

"If you need me, just holler," Riku said offhandedly, swinging his Keyblade over his shoulder, cringing at the way it reminded him of Sora.

She nodded silently, and glided into the room. Riku silently shut the door behind her, leaving Kairi with her memories. All they needed was time.

-

---------------------

-

Kairi picked her way gingerly across the scattered Keychains littering Sora's floor, internally wondering how the boy managed to get around without tripping flat on his face every few minutes or so. She wanted to laugh at the memory, but laughter would not come to her, not for a long, long time.

Sora's room was an averagely-sized one, and somehow decorated in a way that normal teenagers would. Posters stuck to the pale blue walls. Loose-leaf notebooks and thick textbooks scribbled with undecipherable squiggles were stacked unceremoniously on the table in the corner. There was a Gummi Ship Schedule tacked above said desk, along with a list of all the projects he had to pass months ago, somthing that seemed like eternity for Kairi.

Clothes were strewn all across the bedsheets; it looked just like it did one autumn morning ago when Sora last woke up as a Somebody. A set of headphones were partly buried under the avalanche of shirts, attached to a music player. Her forehead wrinkled as she unearthed said pair of headphones...underneath which was a photograph.

This one had been taken in Traverse Town, she realized, recognizing the house which served as their temporary headquarters. It was the short time of peace between restoring her heart and fighting Xehanort's Heartless. Kairi suspected a certain Yuffie had taken the snapshot, in a rare moment of seriousness courtesy of Sora.

Imprinted on the glossy three-by-five inch rectangle of paper was her and the brunette Wielder, both fourteen years old at that time. Sora was staring directly at the camera, his gaze serious and unyielding, his head tilted slightly to accomodate her resting own. His fingers were lightly brushing the ground, and his elbows were resting above his spread knees, massive shoes looking even larger because of perspective.

She was staring at something off-camera, her head leaning against his neck, her hand propped up on the ground.

Kairi stared. She had never seen this picture before. She flipped it over, and only three words were inscribed in Sora's precise handwriting.

_I love you._

Her breath caught in her throat, and she collapsed on his bed, dejected.

_ring ring ring ring ring ring ring ring---_beep.

Kairi blinked.

Sora's phone was ringing, and in the moment she was frozen in surprise, his answering machine had picked it up.

"You _do_ know that this is Sora's number, right? Well, he's not here at the moment, so leave your message after that long, irritating sound we call a beep. He promises that he'll try to call you back within this lifetime." _Beep_.

"Hello? Sora? This is Yuffie," a very clipped voice filtered over. "Listen, if you don't call back in ten minutes, _Leon's_ going to be the one the call you and chew you out. He's pissed b'cause _you're not answering!_ You don't want to be lectured by mister Ray of Sunshine, do ya, do ya? Call back in ten, _or else_, -_Aerith, can't you do something, put him to sleep or-- _beep."

Kairi stared at the blinking piece of machinery. An unpleasant thought hit her; only the King, Organization XIII, her, and Riku knew Sora was already gone. How would they tell the realm of light that one of their protectors was _dead_? Radiant Garden? All the worlds he had visited? _Destiny Islands?_

She sprung up from the bed and walked over to the answering machine, which was perched precariously near the tottering stack of Disney Castle Library books. Her finger hovered for a second before pushing the history button.

"Sora, hey, this is Aladdin, just got your number today. Uhm, m-me and Jasmine were wondering, uh, _hey! _--Don't mind him. This is Jasmine, and we'd like to invite you to our wedding...you've done so much for us, let Agrabah repay it. Aaand...it's okay if you bring Kairi and Riku..._Aladdin!_ Haha, and maybe if Jasmine throws the bouquet, Kairi'll catch it, and...just come, okay? Call us back." _beep_.

"Sora Sora Sora Sora Sora! This is Grand Ninja Yuffie -_owwie Aerith that hurts! Go make out with Cloud or something OW okay shutting my mouth already- _we just wanna know how you been doing--we heard that you already came back to your home World. Congratulations! Give us a call when you can. 'bye!" _beep._

"This is stupid, Sora, your answering machine doesn't need testing! I'm just in the next room, do I _really_ have to call you?" _beep._

"Hey, Sora? Jack speaking...ehem, as you might notice, Halloween is just around the corner--care to join Halloweentown in celebrating this momentous occasion? Feel free to drop by... be sure to wear something scary!" _beep_.

"Soraaa! Yuff again... just reminding you we're still alive and waiting for you to call...or something." _beep._

"Uhmmm, Sora? This is Olette...mind helping me, Hayner and Pence in that independent study I told you about? Unlimited supply of Sea-Salt ice cream! And I won't let Hayner steal anything! _haha_ Call me back, 'kay? Thank you." _beep._

"Dude, Sora, Tidus calling...just wanted you to know, I'm going out with Yuna already...maybe you should get a move on with Kairi? You two are _so_ obvious--heheheh." _beep._

"Wheee! Sora! You're a _knight!_ Congratulations! Leon says hi...we saw you at the Knighting, but you didn't see us! Heehee...lovelots, Yuffie!" _beep._

"Sora? Is something wrong there? We have had no word from you...anyway, you missed a great wedding, me and Jasmine are leaving for our honeymoon tonight...call us when you have time." _beep._

"Sora, this is Scrooge McDuck. Care to be our model for this new skateboard we're marketing? Drop by Radiant Garden if you have the chance, okay? Thank you." _beep._

"K-keyblade Master, this is Marty from B-black Market extension A... w-we're sorry to say we're still out of stock of the paopu flavor...it's arriving tomorrow, but we're happy to present you with a free strawberry sampler! Portal over to our shop...t-thank you." _beep._

"Good afternoon, this is Aerith Gainsborough. I'd really appreciate it, Sora, if you gave us a call...we're becoming worried over here. You've not picked up your phone in almost six months. Call back. Thanks." _beep_.

"S-sir Sora? The shipment's just come in...feel free to pick up the blood anytime; it'll s-set you back for only five hundred munny." _beep._

"Yuffie here! Sora, pick up! Even Cid's going crazy, not that he's not already crazed, but still! We're all worrying our brains out--the guy who attacked the King must've been after the Keyblade! Don't let your guard down!" _beep._

"HEY KIDDO PICK THE DAMN PHONE UP YOU LITTLE--_gah!--_Sorry, sorry, we shouldn't have given the phone to Cid, heheh, anyway, call back, Sora! Yuff-" _beep._

"Hey, that attack was _brilliant!_ Sad that he still lived, though...oh yeah, this is Marty--we're celebrating down here in Fragment Crossing. It'd be great if you came, Sir Sora. And thanks for teaching me how to speak without stammering, ha! You're the best--_uhm_, don't tell the Superior that. See you down here!" _beep._

_ring ring ring ring ring--_beep.

She blinked; the answering machine had taken an incoming call.

"You _do_ know that this is Sora's number, right? Well, he's not here at the moment, so leave your message after that long, irritating sound we call a beep. He promises that he'll try to call you back within this lifetime." _Beep_.

"Sora, this is Leon speaking. Where the _hell_ are you? We've tried reaching you for almost a year now..._and you are not answering_! What is the matter with you? You have us all worried sick now--and when we last called King Mickey, he told us he had _no_ idea where you are...I've still to get hold of Riku's number. Don't give me the excuse you had school or something, _pick up this phone right now!_ Sora--"

Fingers trembling, she picked up the reciever, cutting off Leon's rant. Her heart pounded painfully in her chest.

"Hello?" she ventured timidly.

"_Sor --_ who is this?"

"Kairi Dalmasca."

Leon was obviously surprised that _she_ had picked up the phone, judging from the silence that followed her nervous greeting. "K-kairi?" he finally stammered. Yuffie could be heard shouting her name in the background.

"Kairi, where's Sora?"

Her breath caught in her throat; _this_ was like reality catching up with her, affirming that her Keyblade Master was gone, gone forever, gone into the depths of Roxas' mind--like he never existed. The truth crushed her; the very fact that she was standing in _his_ room seemed to mock her.

"Kairi?" Leon said worriedly. "Are you there?"

Yes I'm here, standing in a dead boy's room, trying to figure out how I'll survive without him.

She burst into tears.

"Leon...Sora can't answer the phone right now..." she whispered raggedly into the reciever, sinking on her knees to the floor.

"Huh? ...why not?" he asked in a frightened voice.

Kairi bowed her head, tears running down her cheeks and dripping onto the photograph which had fluttered out of her loose grasp earlier. She could never let him go, not ever. They said time heals everything--an eternity would not be enough to mend her broken heart.

"S-sora...Sora's _gone_, oh he's _gone forever_..."

It was a different feeling, she knew. Even if Sora wasn't with her, she _knew_ for sure that he was somewhere out there, and that she could reach him whenever she needed him, no matter how far from her grasp. She didn't really miss him, for she knew he was _there_. But now, Sora truly was gone...he was never coming back, she could never really reach him.

She missed him. His smile, his sky-blue eyes, Sora Hikari.

"_Kairi! Remember what I told you? Wherever you are, I'm always there with you! I'll come back to you! I promise!"_

This time, he won't keep his promise.

**-**

**-----------**

**-**

_Naminé _

_May 28, 2081 - May 29, 2084_

_Organization XIII honorary number XIV;_

_The Forger of Memories._

_A trustworthy confidant._

_An excellent summoner._

_A loved Nobody._

_We remember and cherish her. _

_She who walked the knife-edge of existence_

_with great control and dedication._

_The Thirteenth Order is indebted to her memory._

_Our memories may be erased; but in our souls you shall remain forever._

-

------------

-

Roxas had already memorized the inscription on her very own Proof; memorized every detail of the intricately-made marble doorway to her white room. He _should_ know. He was the one who made both.

Carved on her own sapphire tile was the simple engraving of a star--a paopu fruit. Above it, the lock he summoned. A medium-sized keyhole, yawning blackness swirling inside.

Heaving a final sigh, and not restraining the tears that traced their lonely path down his cheeks, he called his Oathkeeper forth.

And with a whispered prayer, he sealed her Proof of Existence, with a lock only a Keyblade Master can break. Which meant only him, and Riku now.

_"I love you, Naminé." _he murmured, letting the words drift in the nonexistent wind.

It was odd...he was always used to her walking around the halls of the Castle. Whether teasing him, tutoring him, or trying to kill him...no difference. She was just _there_. Always there.

Not anymore.

_"I LOVE YOU!_" Roxas screamed, repeating himself, dropping to his knees, heart rent asunder by pain he had never felt before. So _this_ was the burden of having a heart. He knew the pain would lessen with time; but right now, only one thing echoed in the dull, empty corners of his mind.

**You really didn't miss it until it's gone.**

-

-----------------------

-

_Sir Sora Hikari_

_August 13, 2067 A.E - May 29, 2084 A.E._

_-_

_Legendary Keyblade Master, Beloved Knight of the Court, Cherished Friend._

_-_

_-We celebrate the memory of the boy who saved us.-_

_-He who celebrated life, and saw light in the darkest of places.-_

_-He who gave up everything to protect the ones he loved_.-

-

_His sacrifice shall forever be remembered._

_-_

-

----------------------

-

- - - - - - - - - - - -

_wasurenaide kudasai - Please never forget me._

_-_

**A/N: **Wheee! That was so damn hard to write...It kinda scrunched my emotions up. It's true, isn't it? You don't miss something until it's gone, right? -cries-

Wooh. Naminé had existed for almost three years. -explains- 'cause Naminé restored Hayner, Pence, and Olette's memories the day they arrived for the field trip, as a sort of welcome-to-your-nonlife gift to Roxas. They came to existence on the same day, so her birthday is on May 28th. Day after that, she kicked the bucket.

Sora's birthday? Well... it's a tribute. To something... you guys can figure it out. Uhm. I really had no idea when his birthday was, so, what the heck...

I have nothing against May 29th. I know, weird schedule for a field trip, but hey! Who in the world knows how Destiny Islands people reckon time?

The photograph is cover art for the Final Mix soundtrack...I think it's cute. The theme music for the chapter is _Dearly Beloved: Reprise_, the **last** track on the KHII soundtrack, and the **last** music you'll hear in the game; it's the music that plays in the battle report screen.

Read and review, as always. Flames are accepted.

Hope I made your day a little bit more interesting.

**Epilogue'**s coming up...Yeppers. So this fic isn't really finished on Halloween...er. If you squint **real** hard, you'll kinda see what the epilogue is about. Yay.

One of you guys actually guessed what it's about. You know who you are. Great minds think alike, I guess.

And the **sequel** too. You people might kill me if I don't put up one, right? Right?

Happy Halloween, guys!


	33. Always on my Mind

**A/N: **Sheesh. You guys!

:x

The epilogue. With a twist. So it's not quite an epilogue. Rawr.

Kudos to **Keybladem** and **StarryMelody**. You people actually figured it out. Yay.

If you guys want to find out more about Arlene and Ienzo's relationship, a history fic, **Look Not Back**, has been uploaded. Eheh.

I was tempted not to actually write fanfiction for some time until I beat FFXII, but...well... -sigh- term starts soon, and I won't be able to play so much anymore. So I'm taking my own sweet time writing fanfics instead.

Warning: Extremely long chapter, and some STABBING. Yay. WHO HAS EVER HEARD OF AN EPILOGUE WITH STABBING?

I think I'm going insane. Either that, or because I wrote this chapter as soon as I woke up.

**Disclaimer: **Seriously. If you still think I own Kingdom Hearts, you need to be in a mental asylum.

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- - - - - - - - - -

A**l**_way_**s On M**y** Mi_nd_**

- - - - - - - - - -

**-**

**-**

R **e **s **t **o **r **e / **S **a** c **r** i **f** i **c** e**

-_motto aishtemasu-_

-

"Sooo... over at my place?" Riku cajoled, peering over his salad at Kairi, his aquamarine eyes crinkling with amusement.

"Sure," she shrugged, continuing to pick through her own leafy greens as she tried to coax out all the nasty onions hiding amongst the lettuce. Kairi was_ not_ an onion girl, thank you very much.

She remembered Naminé _hated_ onions with a passion that rivaled her own.

Kairi sighed deeply, going unnoticed by her friends, except for Riku. It had almost been four months since _he _and her Nobody faded away. She still didn't have the courage to say his name out loud, after all this time. People had told her to move on, but she couldn't--not when she knew Sora was somewhere inside the blonde bedheaded boy sitting next to her, poking at a crouton.

Roxas had dealt with it his own way--being his scowling Number Thirteen self half the time, and being his normal Roxas self the other. Axel had told her that it was a bad thing, for Roxas and surliness did not mix well--the blonde tended to adopt his 'ruthless-killer' façade whenever that happened. The happy-Roxas issue reminded her, disturbingly enough, of Sora's bipolarity.

Of course, not that the entire student population would mind. He was something of a cult figure now, anyway, now that the school knew that he was truly number Thirteen of the Organization. Some people avoided him like the plague, while some (like those fangirls sitting behind them) followed him wherever he went, hoping to catch a glimpse of another Keyblade Master in action.

_Keyblade Master_...

"Kai, you eat the salad, not toss it around," Selphie reminded her. She looked up into the concerned jade-green eyes of her close friend, and bit her lip.

Really. It was unfair for them. She and Roxas always brought a gloomy (and in the blonde spiky-haired boy's face, when he was in emotionless-mode, killer) atmosphere around them, like a dark and foreboding cloud was floating constantly over their heads.

"Oh," she pursed her lips, and shot Selphie a smile. "I was taking out the onions."

The brunette stared at her, and shrugged resignedly, starting to talk to Yuna once more.

Kairi herself had been the one to break the news to Destiny Academy. She had shadowed the true details of the story, saying that Sora and Naminé had died fighting the Heartless that had orchestrated the Destiny Islands and the Disney attack. Well...it was partly true. Now Sora was truly a hero; one who had saved the Worlds thrice now. Sadly, the third time, he saved the Worlds from _himself_.

His and Naminé's 'memorial service' drew one of the largest crowds Disney Castle had ever drawn. Kairi herself had been the one to insist that Sora's gravestone (under which was an empty casket) be in Disney Castle. She wanted the King to remember every single day what he had done.

King Mickey had voluntarily left his throne for a few months of 'contemplation', but in reality, his own Court was investigating what exactly had gone wrong and why the monarch had allowed it to happen. Goofy and Donald, together with Queen Minnie, headed the business of being Overseer of the Worlds until his Majesty was..._fit_ to take the throne back. If Kairi was given the choice, she'd rather see the mouse suffer the same fate as Sora. But even that wouldn't be enough...

Naminé being a Nobody came as a shock to her fellow students. They had tried to approach Roxas and ask him about it, but number Thirteen only answered them with a scowl and a promise of death if they ever tried to ask him about the said subject.

Needless to say, none dared to do so, after that, even after the end of term. They were now in Year III and Year IV, and the schoolwork at least did something to take her mind off things.

Roxas suddenly yawned, and rummaged through his bag, taking out his theoretical textbook on Masters Sword Handling and Maneuvering. "Riku, did you study for the prelims?"

The platinum-haired Wielder nodded, propping his chin up on his palm as he speared a lettuce leaf. "Don't tell me _you_ didn't, Miss Trepe has no mercy on written. I heard that Vaan's going to be the one who gives the practicals."

"Yep," Selphie agreed, "My brother together with Ashe and Faram."

Roxas groaned. "No fair. They're Paladins already..."

"He_llo_," Tidus cut in, rolling his eyes. "You're Keyblade _Masters_, it should be a piece of cake."

"Oh. Right."

Roxas whined all the same.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"Alcaia, pay attention," Larxene snapped, putting a gloved hand on her black-coated hip.

Riku shrugged, and turned back his gaze to the blonde Nobody, who was currently scribbling on the blackboard the instructions on how to weave Cure and Reflect together. He blinked, and stared at the barely legible squiggles. Healing Arts was never really his best loved subject, and with Larxene teaching, he could honestly say it was a pain in the ---

"What the _heck_ is she writing on the board?" Elazul drawled, tapping a pencil on the edge of his desk. "I knew I should've dropped this subject."

"Well..."

Larxene still kept her teaching post at the Academy, and so did Axel and Zexion, after a very long 'talk' with the principal of the school and the mayor of Destiny Islands. The admin was torn between their reputation as a good school with brilliant students and teachers and their reputation as a safe place to be.

Riku learned that the day after Roxas and Naminé fought in the quadrangle, half of the current students left and transferred to other schools, but nearly double that number applied for entrance to Destiny Academy. Word spread around like wildfire that the Academy was _the_ place to be, seeing that not only did Keyblade Masters and a Princess of Heart study there (not to mention the legendary Key to Kingdom Hearts), but Organization XIII, a group of Nobodies famous for their skills, taught there.

It came as no surprise, then, when an unwilling Marluxia and a seriously pissed off Vexen were forced (with a creepy smile, as Roxas related) to teach Lifestream Biology and Lifestream Chemistry.

The Chilly Academic earned the title of most hated exam-giver in less than a month.

Seriously, it gave Riku a headache. A migraine, if you will.

People either (a) stared at their group at the cafeteria like they had all sprouted extra heads or something, (b) had taken to calling him 'Sir' and Kairi 'Princess', (c) seemed to think that Roxas was being a cocky little bastard, just because he had 'saved the world', (d) stayed at least ten feet from him, (e) followed him around like there was no tomorrow, or (f), just shrugged and treated him as the still same old, smooth-talking Riku.

He preferred (f), thank you very much.

"Argh," number Twelve slapped her forehead exasperatedly. "You people aren't getting any of this, are you?"

A chorus of sarcastic 'what is she saying?' and 'finally she realizes' echoed through the classroom, resulting in no less than twenty kunais driven into the already chock-full-of-holes wall.

Larxene's eyes flashed, and the room fell so silent you could hear a pin drop _and_ hear it echo.

"Ah, forget it," she said good-naturedly, recalling the slivers of metal back into the gaps of her fingers.

Whispers rippled across the room, and the class let out a collective sigh of relief.

"So, for anyone who still doesn't know," she paused, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Halloween is only something like two months away, and that means --- "

"That girl Selphie is out recruiting for the Dance Committee, and we should all lock ourselves in our homes lest we fall prey to her evil ways," a voice called out from behind the classroom, and the whole room burst onto laughter, even Larxene.

Riku, snickering, made a mental note to tell Selphie the exact name and address of the guy who said that.

"...well, partly," Larxene managed to say, swiping at the edge of her eyes, "Aside from that, Twilight Town's hosting the Dance. The teachers are going to talk with the admin on how're you all gonna get there. Costumes as usual, starts at six, ends at one. Partners aren't mandatory. And no funny stuff happening. Excessive PDA will be taped and used for blackmail. Clear?"

"Oh, so you and prof Axel won't be showing any excess..._PDA_...?" Riku said loudly, earning another outburst of laughter from the students and a furiously blushing Larxene.

"Alcaia," she said hotly, "Detention."

"Guilty as charged, eh?"

Another round of laughter.

"Double detention."

"She's blushing as red as Axel's hair," he taunted, smirking.

Larxene threw her hands up in frustration. "Shut up, Riku. Fine. You have detention for the next month, starting tomorrow."

"So I can see you and Axel's public displays of affection," Riku grinned, running a hand through his hair, spirits slightly uplifted in the midst of the roars of laughter of his classmates. He was grateful for moments like these, but at the same time, he feared these moments the most.

For when he laughed, he always imagined a brunet, spiky-haired boy's hearty chuckle, and a frail flaxen-locked girl's soft giggle. They echoed in his head, and Riku frowned, fighting the urge to bang his head into his desk.

He missed them so much.

Especially his best friend.

Today was the twelfth of August. And sooner or later Riku would have to deal with remembering Sora on his birthday.

- - - - - - - - - - -

_Riiiiiiiiiing._

Roxas suddenly bolted up in his chair, and stared around, yawning and wondering where he was.

The classroom was in chaos as people scribbled panicked last-ditch answers in the sheets of paper spread on top of their desks. Papers were flying around as students stood up, rushed to the teacher's table, passed their exam papers, and trotted out into the dismissal flood of people.

"If in thirty seconds I do not have your paper in my hands I will flunk you automatically," their proctor, a tall, imposing woman named Quistis Trepe with groupies perpetually following her, said in a no-nonsense voice.

Eyebrows furrowed, Roxas scanned his own test paper, chewing the end of his pencil as he did. Sure, he did have a few blanks, and a few not-so-sure answers, but at least he tried, right? He surreptitiously tried to dry the patch of drool on his paper, ignoring the looks his classmates cast him. Cleanliness was a good point, in any case.

He shuffled over to the table and handed his paper in, giving Miss Trepe a weak smile. He sure hoped he passed the written exams --- he had no intention of flunking Masters Sword Handling and Maneuvering.

"Hey," Riku clapped him on the shoulder, shouldering his own bag as he did.

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Okay, Riku, I know you aced the test, stop bugging me."

The platinum-haired Wielder shrugged. "You said that, not me. Anyway, I'll wait for you by the main doors, okay? Don't take ten years in there."

He growled and Riku laughed, heading off into the opposite direction. Roxas stomped to the men's shower room and changed into his Organization XIII coat, wondering why he bothered with wearing a uniform in the first place. Like anyone would even try and stop him on the choice of clothing. Being a Nobody made him a lot less approachable. Anyway, he had taken to wearing his coat every chance he legally could; it reinforced the fact that he was number Thirteen and therefore, should not be trifled with.

As soon as he emerged into the corridor people walking past him flattened themselves against the lockers as much as humanly possible. Roxas bit back a chuckle as he hurriedly slipped on his gloves, flexing his fingers to make sure they fit right --- they _were_ new, after all. The whole Organization had bought new coats from the Black Market, obviously because the ones that had been used in the battle with Sora were almost unrecognizable from all the tears and blood splattered on them.

Shifting his bag, Roxas huffed and quickened his pace enough for the people to notice him and get out of the way. He was busy tightening the cords of his hood to notice Kairi waiting for him in the middle of the hallway. Understandably, they collided with each other rather painfully.

"Roxas!" she scolded, "Watch where you're going!"

He felt all the color drain out of his face, and immediately looked away. "Sorry."

"Come _on_," Kairi tapped her feet impatiently, hands fisted on her hips. "We have a project to do."

"Yeah, yeah," he mumbled, still keeping his gaze on the floor, because everytime he saw the redwine-haired Princess of Heart, he saw Naminé.

The whole Organization had helped arrange her Proof's room. It was a rather large white one, with one whole wall of windows with a magnificent view of Kingdom Hearts. Sky-blue curtains graced the windowframes, the familiar white table and white high-backed chair, and all her artwork had been framed and hung, rather that just being stuck on the wall with scotch tape. Roxas himself placed a stack of sketchbooks and her favorite set of colored pencils on the tabletop. It seemed stupid, but it relieved some of his stress.

"Kairi?" Her name slipped out from his mouth, and she turned back to face him, expression mildly curious.

"Hm?"

"Uh..." he walked up to catch up with her, and they fell into step together. Now he's in for it; there was no turning back. "I...I know a way to bring him back."

As expected, Kairi stopped short and whirled around to face him. "Wha--"

"Listen," he said urgently, staring her in the eye. "I can bring Sora back. The Dark Keyblade."

She looked horrified. "What the _hell_ are you thinking, Roxas!" she yelled, placing her hands on his shoulders and shaking him as hard as she could. "You can get _killed_!"

People around them started to whisper, but he ignored them, repeating to Kairi in a hurried whisper what he had told the Organization. With every word the look on Kairi's face darkened and her scowl twisted further.

"You. Could. Get. Killed," she hissed after he had finished. "I already lost _him_, and I'm not about to risk losing _you_."

"You're losing me and getting him back!" he argued, matching the look on her face with a scowl of his own. Didn't she understand? The realm of light needed Sora much more than him! _Kairi_ needed Sora more than him! Somehow the previous happenings must've screwed up with her common sense.

"No, Roxas!" she paused, cluctching the strap of her bag so tightly her knuckles were white. "It's not that I don't want him to come back; it's just...I don't want to lose somebody else. I might end up losing _you_. I don't want that, Roxas. Please listen to me."

He gaped for a full ten seconds before brushing past her, thoughts swirling around madly. What the hell was she thinking?

Riku was, as he had said, leaning on the doorframe of the main entrance to the Academy. Kairi's footsteps were pounding behind him, and the silver-haired boy raised an eyebrow in an unspoken question. Roxas shook his head and stormed out the door.

- - - - - - - - - - -

"What's up with him?" Riku asked as he waited for Kairi to catch up with him. They walked out together, following the blonde number Thirteen to the quadrangle.

She shook her head. "I have no idea."

He narrowed his eyes, but said nothing nor betrayed any hint that he knew Kairi was lying through her teeth. The redhead never was good at covering things up.

Roxas suddenly whirled around, with the most unconvincing smile Riku had ever had the misfortune to witness in his entire life. "Riku? Could you please portal me over to the Castle?"

He blinked, taken aback. He knew Roxas had been hitching a 'ride' from his fellow Organization members through the Corridors, since his powers that had anything to do with darkness (like portalling) had vanished. He could still summon Slayers and the like, but most of his Nobody abilities had faded away when he had become a Somebody. "What about --- "

"Axel told me that the teachers have a meeting about the _Halloween Dance_," he explained, with unneeded emphasis on the words Halloween Dance. Kairi stiffened almost immediately and went pale. Riku narrowed his eyes at the blonde spiky-haired boy, fists clenching. Roxas smirked and laced his fingers behind his head.

Although Riku dearly wanted to introduce his fist to that smirk, he held back the urge for the sake of Kairi. The girl would probably become even more depressed if he and Roxas fought. "Fine, Roxas," he muttered, flinging out his hand and creating a portal right then and there.

Some students screamed, but most just stayed away. Portals were a common sight now; the Organization members who were professors just didn't care what people thought.

Roxas' smirk faltered, and his shoulders slumped. "Sorry. I got carried away," he mumbled, staring at the concrete ground, feet shuffling.

Kairi was visibly taken aback, but she smiled warmly and turned to Riku. "I'm going to the Castle too."

Both boys turned to face her.

Roxas blinked. "What now?"

Riku nodded in agreement. Kairi visited the Castle that Never Was at least once every week for one reason or another; once to help Marluxia in his garden, another one to train with Xaldin and Xigbar, with the most recent one to take music lessons from both Larxene and Demyx.

She prodded Roxas' chest, narrowing her eyes. "Hel_lo_? We're partners in the Materia Handling project, right?"

"But it's not due until next month!" he protested, showing the mutual aversion he and Riku had for the subject.

Kairi tilted her head. "Cramming doesn't always work."

Riku stepped in, putting a hand on Kairi's shoulder and making her squeak. "I know you hate the Corridors, Kai...you two can just work on the project in my place."

The auburn-haired girl looked scandalized. "I do _not_ hate the Corridors, Riku. It's just the I'm a Princess of Heart so naturally I won't feel comfortable in such --- "

Roxas snorted derisively. "Somebody should teach her to use the Corridors of Light."

His eyes widened together with Kairi's. "There are Corridors of Light?" he asked, speaking for both himself and the her.

The blonde shrugged. "I dunno. You have the Corridors of Darkness, right? So there must be Corridors of --- "

Kairi rolled her eyes and pulled Riku into the portal herself. "C'mon, Riku, let's just leave him to his inane babbling."

"Hey! That was mean!" Roxas hollered, pouting and following them inside.

- - - - - - - - - -

Zexion paused, placing a finger in the book he was reading as a marker. He breathed deeply and quirked an eyebrow.

What was _she_ doing here?

A few seconds later the white marble door of the Castle Library opened, and a slim redheaded girl with swirling beryl eyes cautiously peeked in. She then slipped inside and closed the door, careful not to make a sound.

He seriously doubted it had anything to do with the unspoken rule of silence in _any _Library.

"Princess," he said slowly, and Kairi squeaked.

"Hey!" she pointed an accusing finger at him. "Why didn't I see you there?"

Zexion shrugged. "You don't look close enough."

She blinked, and frowned. "Well...Uhm. You're Zexion, right?"

"Who else would I be?"

To his surprise, Kairi giggled, flouncing down into the chair beside him and scrutinized him, her chin resting on her palms. "You don't act like the Zexion Riku told me that you would be."

Now _he_ frowned. "What did the Wielder tell you?"

"That you're emo and you don't talk."

Zexion set down his book and choked back a smile. "I was. But life just taught me some important things."

"Nonlife," she pointed out, straightening up and fixing the collar of her uniform.

"Life or nonlife, they're both fleeting. You have to make the best of them," he sighed, yawning and burying his face in his arms, his forehead coming in contact with his book. He stared at the letters of the title --- _Ansem Reports _--- and wondered how Xemnas had managed to convince Sora to give the papers to the Organization. Probably when he was still half-Heartless.

"I know," Kairi said heavily, and he cringed, knowing that he had touched a nerve.

"Sorry."

"I thought Nobodies couldn't feel."

"That's the thing, Princess. We ourselves don't feel, but remember what it was to have a heart. So technically we can still remember what it feels like to be happy or whatever," he explained, voice muffled.

"Riku was wrong," she said simply, and Zexion lifted his head up to stare at the redwine-locked girl. She took a glance at him and started fiddling with her thumbs. "You really weren't all emo, were you? You just shut yourself down because you've had a very bad experience with socializing with other people."

"You sound like a therapist," he smiled, raising an eyebrow. It was hard to believe that this girl sitting beside him was the same six-year-old girl Ansem the Wise had sent away ten years ago. Destiny Islands had really changed her.

"I'm good at that," she tilted her head thoughtfully, then started scrutinizing him once again.

Zexion drew back. "What?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Why do you have your hair that way? What are you hiding?"

He hesitated, and turned his stare back into the leather-bound Ansem Reports. "That's...no. It's nothing. I just want to have my hair that way."

"Then why'd you hesitate?" she asked curiously, lifting her hand to brush the strands of hair off the left side of his face. He drew back immediately, but her fingers had already grazed the lilac hair, flipping it sideways for a split second.

Kairi gasped, and her chair made a screeching sound as she reeled back.

"I told you," he said quietly. "It's nothing."

He could feel her gaze at him with a horrifed expression frozen on her face.

"That's _not_ nothing! You...you..."

Closing his eyes tiredly, he leant back in his chair. "Yes, I'm also half-Heartless, Princess. That's why I cover the _left_ side of my face." He knew Kairi was seeing Sora in his...condition.

"How..?"

"I don't know. I became Heartless in an experiment. Maybe it was botched or something," he explained. "I've learned to live with it. That's why I don't use any weapons at all; I don't fight except when I really need to. Might go berserk."

True, over the last eight years that he had been a Nobody, the darkness swirling across his skin had retreated, and only the Heartless eye and the blackened left hand remained. He always made sure to trim his fingernails; ripped gloves was something of an issue with him.

"So you knew how..."

"Yes, but I got too worked up on Arlene to help him. Sorry, Princess."

Thankfully, Kairi had calmed down somewhat, and even patted him on the back. "It's okay; it would've happened eventually, anyway."

"Thanks."

"I sound weird," Kairi stifled a laugh. "I'm actually talking to my professor about his feelings...now that I think about it...ew..."

He chuckled, and she stared at him disbelievingly. What exactly _had _Riku told Kairi about him?

"Uhm, Professor?"

"You can call me Zexion when you're here, Princess."

She frowned. "Call me Kairi."

"Fine, Kairi."

"Why weren't you in class today? Lots of people kept asking us where you were," she asked, tracing circles on the marble table.

"I had some research to do," Zexion paused. "Was _this_ why you came here to the Library?"

Her eyes widened, and she shook her head vehemently. "Uh, no, there's this project where Roxas and I are partners. Something about Materia Types and where to get them. I have research too."

Zexion raised an eyebrow.

"Uhm..." She paused, hugging her bookbag to her chest. "Is Saïx in his Proof?"

He choked. "N-no," he managed to say, "I don't think so; Superior sent him off to see how the investigations are going on in Disney Castle."

"Oh," she abruptly stood up and brushed herself off. "Well...I...I have to take a look at his Proof...the Materia there..."

Zexion finished his choking session and settled for staring at Kairi instead. "Sure, he won't mind. As long as you don't touch anything."

"I said I was going to take a _look_," she smirked, and heaved her bag over her shoulder. "Look, not _touch_."

"Fine. Don't get lost."

She rolled her eyes. "I've been here dozens of times. Besides, I need the exercise. Walking's good."

"This castle wasn't made for walking, you know," he said, rifling through the book to the Report where he had stopped reading.

"I _know_. 'bye, Professor."

He watched as the redhead pushed back the chair and walked off, rummaging for something in her bag as she did.

"Oh, and if Roxas stops by and looks for me, please tell him I'm in Saïx's proof."

Zexion shrugged once again. "Sure. Thanks for your time, Princess."

Kairi stuck out her tongue, and left.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Research.

...not exactly. Zexion didn't need to know that.

Kairi picked her way through the shambles of Organization XIII's Proof of Existence, careful not to trip over and crush the loosely-bound book she held in her arms. She wanted to be alone. She wanted to finish perusing this final shard of memory by herself.

Panting slightly, she ducked through number Seven's portal, into the Addled Impasse, where the glass windows hid nothing of Kingdom Hearts' glorious brilliance. White light spilled onto perfect squares on the marble floor. Her own footsteps made no sound.

She halted to a stop in one particularly bright patch of light, right under the massive moon that was Kingdom Hearts. Taking a deep breath, she knelt, and opened Sora's journal--right to the last full page halfway. It was his final entry, before he went renegade. Probably the last coherent thought he had. She bowed her head, reading silently.

_Hey._

_I went and got my enrollment cancelled today, and guess what? Kai's going out with RiKU..._

_It hurts--I hate that, I can only really feel pain_

_Killed that Vandalise prof...Cripes, Antiform's yapping in my head again. He likes doing that--_

_Geez_

_I LOVE her, but it's just wrong I can't feel love, you know?_

Her breath hitched; teardrops, both clear and bloody, had blurred the last sentence. She could almost imagine Sora, sitting cross-legged on his bed, head bowed--

_Oh yeah I have a story to tell you--it's an old one, and_

_my hand's starting to shake hell no ANTIFORM stop it--_

_Okay, got it back, just told Antiform to wait for a few more minutes--we're storming Disney Castle; I'm claiming my Reverse Keyblade, it's MINE, after all. And if you saw Kairi with Riku..._

_great I'm so damn pissed_

_Anyway, moving on_

_Told this one to Axel the other day; I felt so depressed._

_There's this white rose, you know? A sparrow falls in love with it, and one day, he proposes_

_then the white rose says she'll only accept him once she turns into a red rose_

_and_

_I can't do this, oh I've got a craving again_

_and then_

_the sparrow tears himself apart, and spreads his blood on the rose, making her turn red with his_

_must not write word; craving shall get worse--I need to stop leaving unfinished entries in this journal anyway. So then the white rose realizes she loves the sparrow_

_but she's too late; he's dead._

_Sounds familiar, doesn't it?_

_But my rose doesn't give a damn whether I die or not; no siree--and hell she hates me!_

_but I LOVE HER no matter what_

_I love you, Kairi. Me. Sora! no matter what happens--if Roxas has to keep his promise; I may never have the chance to say this_

_cripes, she won't even read this need blood NOW_

A long fingernail scratch-mark marred the paper, breaking its ruled lines. And on the next line--

_Buddyboy's too much of a damn sap to write this--phooey. _

_Going to murder King Mick-o now. Heyo little journal, say biddybye to your author! B'coz he _

_might not_

_COME BACK_

The entry ended abruptly. Once again, tears spilled over her cheeks, and she wept. Clutching the journal to her heaving chest, she sobbed with her all--just like she did in those particularly bad nights when she was nothing but a crying ball in the midst of tattered sheets she had torn herself. She knew her tears would not stop flowing, not for a long time.

Four months passed by like a nightmare; her dreams were haunted by a faceless spiky-haired brunet calling out her name.

Over and over again.

Over and over again.

"Kairi."

She ignored the voice; it sounded like a hangover from her nightmares. She cursed herself for letting herself degrade into something like this, she _was_ supposed to be strong, she _was_ a Princess of Heart. But her strength -_oh Sora forever and ever- _was _gone_ and she--

"Kairi, please stop crying..."

Kairi suddenly felt someone kneel beside her, on her right side. She cracked one swollen eye open, and found herself looking into the concerned stormy-blue eyes of Roxas Hikari.

_Hikari no don't think about that_

"...don't cry," he whispered hoarsely, lips curving into a half-smile. Half smiles were all that Roxas could manage, now. Kairi leveled her gaze at the silver necklace of his Organization coat, dancing in the moonlight that was Kingdom Hearts.

"Roxas?" she asked tentatively, hugging the black journal closer to her chest, the spiral wire digging into the thin fabric of her dress. His eyes flickered to the looseleaf notebook, and his facial expression tightened considerably. Roxas focused his gaze on her instead.

Cerulean blue eyes scrutinized her own beryl ones, coming closer and closer to her face, thick black eyelashes where tiny sparkling teardrops glistened...their noses slightly grazed each other, and the boy's pale lips were actually parting and...

Kairi didn't know what to feel; anger, or pity, or sadness, or just plain desperation--_oh God he looks so much like Sora--_as she could feel Roxas' warm breath on her own chapped lips--

"You look so much like her, Kairi."

He whispered those words in only the way a broken soul could--pain and unrequited love bubbling under a mask of controlled voice, and eyes brimming with tears of hate for himself and somehow hate for the entire world.

She watched, stunned -_b'cause she really really thought he'd kiss her-_, as Roxas got to his feet in a split second and stared up at the glowing heart of all Worlds. "...I can't stand it anymore."

Her words froze on her tongue as his faint words floated on the air and settled on her ears. Blue-violet locked with cerulean for a split second, and Roxas' lips curved even more--the first genuine smile he had shown for the past half-year.

_He's not doing what I think he's--_

The blonde Keyblade Master held out his right hand, and the unmistakable shape of the Dark Keyblade coalesced into his fingers.

_"No!" _Kairi screamed, as Roxas lifted the Keyblade and spun it to face his own chest. She lunged forward in a desperate bid to knock the Keyblade away, but she saw something flicker in his cerulean eyes--they seemed to suddenly return to their former luster.

Why did Keyblade Masters have to be so damn _stupid_?

She felt her heart plummet as he grinned at her, looking geniunely happy for the first time in months.

And Roxas stabbed himself with the Dark Keyblade.

She couldn't help seeing Sora do the same.

Light blossomed from his chest, and his fingers loosened their grip. She forced herself to snap out of her stunned bewilderment and scrambled to her feet, the journal crashing to the cold marble floor.

_I've done it again._

_I couldn't stop him._

_...Sora's--_

It started with a single brilliant point of light, bursting from the ebony-black of his coat, just below the necklace. It then quickly expanded exponentially. Kairi could feel the wave of energy knock her off her feet. It washed over her as that brilliant light drew on her own powers, and she felt her consciousness start to slip.

Roxas fell, darkness streaming from him and covering him...the strands faded away...

...and Sora hit the floor soundlessly.

The light resonated, and everything went black.

Her last thought was a fervent prayer for the blonde Nobody--

_Thank you, Roxas._

_-----------------------_

One final gesture.

Roxas bit his lip, and stood up for the last time. He gazed down at himself and saw himself wearing his Twilight-born clothes. His figure was hazy and transparent at the same time, glowing slightly with the same light of Kingdom Hearts. He stared at the two teenagers lying on the cold marble ground.

Kairi, Princess of Heart, redwine locks swirled around her head, closed eyes above a frown, dried streaks of tears on her cheeks.

Sora, Keyblade Master, mahogany spikes pressed against the white floor, looking for all the world that he's just fallen asleep after a hard day's work.

They lay in front of him, a foot apart from each other, hands held loosely at their chests.

Sighing resignedly, Roxas took a step forward and bent down. He took Sora's hand and reached it out to place it in Kairi's.

"Huh?"

A giggle.

Kairi's hand linked with Sora's, and Roxas looked up into the translucent figure of Naminé. She set down the linked hands of the pair and smiled up at him.

"You didn't notice me," she pouted, putting her hands behind her back. She was watching him from the time he stood up--maybe he was just too caught up in the moment.

He looked shocked, and to say that was an understatement. "N-Naminé?" he managed to choke out, stepping forward. "H-how did you--"

She stepped forward too, meeting him in front of the two teens lying on the floor, and held up a hazy finger to his hazy lips. "Don't say anything more. We don't have much time."

The truth was, Naminé had only come to existence once more because she was the one who held Sora's heart when Roxas released it. She was also the one who released it when Sora came back. And in all likelihood this was the last time she'll ever exist as Naminé ever again.

"I...I...Naminé," the blonde boy choked, fists clenched at his sides.

"I'm sorry," they both said at the same time, then immediately turned away from each other.

"Sorry for pushing you too hard, Nam," Roxas stammered. Naminé looked upwards, trying to blink back the tears that were threatening to fall. "I guess..."

"No," she suddenly spun around and threw her arms around his waist, burying her face and her tears in his back. "It's okay. I was too blind to see that I was wrong. I don't care if we're only Nobodies anymore; all I care about is that I love you and that I'll love you forever."

Roxas gently loosened her hands and turned around to face her, a smile on his face and translucent tears beading at the edge of his beautiful stormy blue eyes. "That sounds so cheesy."

She couldn't help but laugh as he intertwined his fingers with hers. Roxas leant forward until their foreheads were touching each other. Naminé suddenly remembered what was going to happen to them, and her happiness faltered. "You could've lived your life, Roxas, with a heart. You shouldn't have given it up."

He shook his head, soft golden spikes bouncing. "Nah. I'd rather be with you."

She looked to her side, frowning as reality hit her. "We both know that's not going to happen."

"Oh, c'mon," Roxas said softly, placing his arms around her waist, holding her close as much as he dared to. "You're the one who said it, remember?" he asked, gesturing to the two teens lying behind them, basked in the light of Kingdom Hearts. "We'll be together again. Everytime _they_ are together."

Naminé had had enough. She burst into tears and pounded her fisted hands into his chest. "But it's not the same, Roxas!" she screamed, sobbing and hurting and hating the world at the same time.

"It's just...not..." she trailed off, crying quietly, feeling Roxas shush her and draw her closer. She pressed her head against her chest, not really taking note of the fact that nothing was beating there. Translucent tears streamed down her face and ran into his translucent clothes, and she was grateful that there was someone on whom she could cry on. "It's just not..." she repeated, unable to stop crying.

"I know," he whispered into her hair, and she felt drops warm liquid drip down onto her forehead. She looked up and Roxas looked away, his eyes shut closed and his lips in an anguished snarl.

"It's unfair," she stated simply, lifting her hands and twining them around his neck.

He managed to smile. "It is, but at least something good came out of it. I got to know you. Even if you did erase my memories...I'll still remember you."

The corners of her mouth twitched into a half-smile. "And how would that happen?"

"Soulmate," he stated simply. "I may not have a heart, but I have a soul of my own."

"In that case..." Naminé smiled for real this time, mirroring Roxas' expression. "I'll make sure I'll never forget you. Even when I'm gone."

"Is that a promise?" Roxas asked teasingly. She nodded, resting her head against his chest. She felt him tuck her head under his chin, and they embraced for the final time.

Naminé felt happy. It wasn't borrowed; she was feeling genuine joy. Maybe two Nobodies made a Somebody, or something to that effect. Sure, it was unfair as hell, and sure, it gave her excruciating pain, the knowledge that she would never see Roxas again -_don't forget that she herself would disappear forever-_, but she was grateful that in the short span of time that she existed, she was loved. She had loved. Nothing, not even remerging, could change that.

She suddenly felt lightheaded, and numbness spread upwards from her sandalled feet.

Naminé had felt this before, in Roxas' arms, with her chest in bloody tatters and her eyes raised up to the heavens.

He made a little noise of suprise, and held her closer.

They were fading.

Instead of panic, she felt peace. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, tears still sparkling on her cheeks. "I love you, Roxas."

He choked on his own breath, and squeezed his arms held around her waist, holding her as if his life depended on it.

"I love you more, Naminé."

And that was the last thing Naminé heard before the both of them faded back into their Others, their bodies fading away into strands of light, back into the seventh Princess of Heart and the Key to Kingdom Hearts.

- - - - - - - - - - -

_motto aishtemasu - _I love you more.

So you know who's restored, and who sacrifices.

Yay. So that's a happy ending for Sora and Kairi...for Roxas and Naminé...well, at least they're (technically) together. Sad. I'm a Namixas fan, and it's kind of heartbreaking to write this.

Augh.

To anonymous reviewer **marybeetles**, thanks for the review. I like your penname...yeppers.

**Mebd**, yeah. Simple and Clean...the melody fits it. This chap shouldn't make you sad too much. Heh. The sequel has something to do with another note, and it will be drama, even more than this one. Roxas just kinda snapped at the beginning, and you can't really blame him... Aww. Thanks for the review.

**Starfire**, that's a pretty good idea you have there. Sadly, I have something else in mind. The sequel tackles the Keyblade Master who's-on-what-side of the story, 'cause Sora'll be pretty pissed off at King Mickey. Thanks for sharing your idea.

**Lyemi**, yes, you got it. Sora's birthday is a tribute to Axel and Roxas. -grins-

I just don't know what came over me, but expect at least **two** more chapters from this thing. Argh.

About the **sequel**, it involves another note, and Kairi being Princess of Radiant Garden. Uhhh... I can't really say when I'll be uploading it...just stay tuned.


	34. Promise

**A/N: **...Y'know, it would really do you good to read the author's notes. **CherryIzzy**, s' okay. Sometimes the notes do get a bit irritating.

Long chapter. Fortunately, this is one of the most lighthearted chapters I've written so far. YAY.

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Kingdom Hearts, this would be KHIII. And then Sora/Antiform would be the hardest boss battle in it, and he'd look hella cool. Yep.

**- - - - - - - - - - -**

**Promise**

**- - - - - - - - - - -**

**-**

**-**

R **e** l **e** a **s** e / R **e** s **t** o **r** e

-_ano hino chikai wo ima mo?-_

-

-

Kairi never really did like mornings. She was more of a late sleeper, anyway.

The sunlight filtered through the peach curtains of her room, announcing in a rather irritating fashion that it was the dawn of another day, and that _yes_, she had to get up now.

And she did.

Yawning, she sat up and rubbed the dried crusts of tears from the edge of her eyes. She had the funniest dream last night...but she was sure it was impossible, because right now, she was in her own room in their home in Destiny Islands, not sprawled in the middle of the cold marble floor of the Addled Impasse.

She was in the midst of swinging her legs out into the floor when she realized that today was Sora's birthday.

Instantly her shoulders sagged and she put her face in her hands, trying to calm herself. She got up and threw back the curtains, the sun's warm rays seeping through her tank top and pajama bottoms.

_frush frush FRUSH_

"Huh?" her eyes widened, and she pushed her windows open. She distinctly heard something go bump or crash into the bushes right below her second-story window. Narrowing her eyes, she peered downwards, wondering if it was a burglar or something.

"Kairi?"

She squeaked and whirled around, only to find a puzzled Roxas staring at her from her open bedroom door. He raised an eyebrow. "What're you doing?"

"T-there was something outside---" she stammered, looking back over her shoulder. She certainly didn't hallucinate about it, and "--- what are _you _doing here?"

The blonde spiky-haired boy leant on the side of her doorframe and tilted his head thoughtfully. "Well, you're going to visit Sora, right?"

"Yes, so...?" she slowly said, staring at him.

"I came to wake you up," he explained. "Your grandma let me in, and she'll tell your dad that we're going to Disney Castle. We'll have to take a Gummi Ship --- I went to get Riku, but he slept in today, and he looked pretty much wasted."

"Oh." Kairi said blankly, not really comprehending that it was about seven in the morning, and that Roxas was standing in front of her, and that she was still dressed in the clothes she slept in. "Okay."

"I'll wait for you out front," He straightened up, waving a hand dismissively. "And take a shower, Kai. You look like you've gone through a hurricane."

She threw a pillow at him. He ducked, the pillow hit the hallway, and he stuck out his tongue.

That was the strangest wake-up call she had ever had in her entire life.

- - - - - - - - - -

_"Requesting permission to dock. Princess Kairi, Wielder Roxas, passengers. No cargo."_

_"Permission granted. All clear."_

"Hold on, kiddies!" the captain, Cid, a rather 'enthusiastic' (for the lack of a better word; if there was a book on curses and similar words the temperamental toothpick-chewing mechanic would have been the author _and_ publisher) man from Traverse Town, hollered. "Might be a bit rough!"

Kairi rolled her eyes and prepared to yell back in Cid's ear that _he_ didn't need to yell, since this was a private four-seater Gummi Ship and that she and Roxas could hear him loud and clear, thank you very much. However, she was cut off when the ship suddenly jolted backward, making her seatbelt almost choke her. She could almost hear Roxas laugh his head off.

"_Cid!_" she screeched. "Don't do that!"

He only grinned maniacally before the ship jolted forward and she was pressed back into her seat this time. She stared outside the windshield at the castle-laden world of Disney Kingdom as it loomed upon them.

After Roxas had left her room, Kairi _had_ taken a shower and dressed in her usual pink not-in-school dress, smoothing the hood she had never used back. She pecked her grandma and her just-awake father on the cheek good-bye, not missing the sympathetic looks on their faces.

She found Roxas shuffling his feet on their front porch, stealing disracted stares at somewhere she really didn't care to know. Let him be. He was probably going through as a hard time as she was, considering it was because of him that they were visiting a gravestone instead of throwing a party in the first place.

They didn't have much trouble at the Destiny Islands Gummi Ship Terminal; in fact, they were even offered the ride to Disney Castle. The Island citizens were pretty much a close-knit family, and everyone knew it was the optimistic-turned-renegade Keyblade Master's birthday today. In fact, Kairi noticed with a grateful smile, all of the islanders had a sky-blue ribbon wound around either their upper arm, wrist, ankle, or tied up in their hair. It turned out Selphie was giving them away at one corner of the Terminal. The jade-eyed brunette somberly handed her and Roxas one each; and she found out that every single piece of ribbon had a silver crown stamped on its end.

Gummi Ship personnel assured her that they were providing them with the best transportation possible --- when Roxas offered to pay for the ship ride with Organization XIII money, they politely declined, either out of courtesy or of just plain fear from associating with Roxas.

Well, Cid may be the best pilot on the face of the universe, but he was just _brash_. Yes. That was the word.

The Gummi Ship shuddered to a stop, and the blonde mechanic spent a few minutes staring outside the windshield before gesturing them out the sliding door with a gruff "What're you waiting fer!".

Kairi noticed he had a sky-blue ribbon tied around his wrist.

Roxas put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her out gently, sending a Look in Cid's general direction. Kairi couldn't help but smile. The blonde boy was overly protective of her; it was like he was the brother she never had. Never mind that he was also the brother she never had that killed the person she loved. She could sometimes see Sora in him --- she took care never to say it out loud, but Roxas often reminded her of Sora. He really did.

"Hey, go on ahead," Roxas said loudly, breaking her out of her thoughts. Kairi stared at him, puzzled.

He ran a hand through unruly blonde locks. "I'll have a word with the guards. I'll catch up with you later, okay?"

She shrugged. "Sure."

They parted ways at the garage entrance to the castle, Roxas going to the guardhouse, she walking on towards Disney main. Chip and Dale squeaked greetings at both of them before Roxas shooed her off.

She walked on with a puzzled smile on her face and a raised eyebrow, right into the red-carpeted Colonnade, with a magnificent view of one of the Courtyards.

Kairi looked up into the blue morning sky, shielding herself from the rather harsh glare of the sun. Hmm. It was sunny today. Might be some kind of sign.

She shook her head vehemently. _What the heck are you thinking, Kairi?_she silently yelled at herself. _Sign? Hello?_

Sighing, she walked down the steps from the Colonnade leading to the main courtyard, listening to the rustling of grass under her feet. She had heard that the Palace gardeners would not go near to this courtyard anymore, claiming that the spirit of the fallen Keyblade Master was haunting them and such. Kairi knew, however, that there was no such thing; Sora Hikari was now resting inside his once-Nobody, Roxas. Permanently.

Well...that's just as good as dead, right?

She walked across the courtyard until she was standing right in front of Sora's memorial stone (since it couldn't be called a grave, seeing that there was no dead body to start with). Sighing, she reached out her hand until her fingertips grazed his name incised in the white marble.

His stone was about three feet tall and half as wide, with a marble crown placed on top and a marble Kingdom Key driven into the soft earth beside it. The real Kingdom Keychain was dangling from its hilt; King Mickey had given it up once he found out the Reverse Keyblade was at his call once more. The King had a fountain built to replace to bushes in the center of the courtyard, saying something about grass statues not really suiting the atmosphere.

"Happy birthday, Sora," she murmured, kneeling down, mentally telling herself not to cry. After all, she was supposed to be a princess. Princesses are not supposed to cry.

Kairi dug her hand into the bag belted to her skirt and took out Oathkeeper. It had remained with her ever since Sora had tossed it to Riku, who in turn gave it to her. Hey, she made it for _him_, originally. She then took out a folded slip of paper and placed it, together with her thalassa-shell charm, right at the base of his headstone.

The folded piece of paper was the note she had sent into the ocean. It had been carefully folded and tucked into Sora's journal.

_Thinking of you, wherever you are---_

Well...it had brought Sora and Riku back once, right? It wouldn't hurt to hope that somehow it'll bring the brunet back to her...would it? Together with the Oathkeeper...

Sora _had_ promised on the thalassa-shell time that he'd come back...

"You would've been seventeen today, right?" she laughed weakly. "And you would've gloated over the fact that you're already seventeen while I'm only sixteen, even if we're only months apart. And then all of us would've went down to the beach and celebrated, and then you would've just snoozed in the sand, you lazy bum."

She bowed her head.

Tears spattered the manicured grass at her knees.

"Kairi..."

She shook her head, trying to dry her tears at the sound of Roxas' voice. He was standing quite a few feet away from her, hands behind his back and a look of worry etched on his face. "...It's okay, I'm okay Roxas."

He cocked his head and raised an eyebrow.

"Well, not really, but I'll be fine."

"See? It wasn't so hard to admit it, right?" he smiled, taking his hands from behind his back. Clipped between two fingers was a slip of paper, and he threw it right at her direction.

It was a card, she found out, a rectangle of paper cut with three triangles on one end. She ran one finger along one side, and not surprisingly, a thin line along said finger formed and blood bloomed from it. The edge was as sharp as a knife's. She flipped it over, and gasped.

"I found it when we were fixing Naminé's room. She was the one who made all the cards Sora used in Castle Oblivion, and, apparently, she drew that one just before starting on rechaining his memories," Roxas explained, crossing his arms and looking away.

On the card was a painting of Sora looking back over one shoulder, with one hand raised in goodbye.

"It has no special use," the blonde continued. "It's just a drawing...and it's yours to keep."

"Thank you," she blinked, and tucked it inside her belted bag carefully, before staring back up at Roxas. "You know," she paused, struggling to remember the dream she had last night. "I had the weirdest dream last night."

He looked confused. "Huh?"

"I dreamt that you stabbed yourself with the Dark Keyblade," she sighed, twiddling her fingers and ignoring the growing smirk on Roxas' face. "And then, you know, it worked, and..."

"You're giving me ideas, Kairi," he said quietly.

She shook her head. "No, you idiot. It was just a dream, I mean, it couldn't be true, since," Kairi stole a glance at him, "You're standing there..."

A very uncomfortable silence.

Roxas grinned.

"Who says it couldn't be true?"

He stepped to the side, revealing an equally happy Sora.

She stared.

Sora grinned sheepishly. "Uhh..." he scratched his head. "Hi?"

- - - - - - - - - - -

"Smooth, real smooth," Roxas muttered out of the corner of his mouth at the brunet, and he rolled his eyes. "Is that all you can say?"

His Other pouted and poked him rather hard at the back of the head. "Shut it, Roxie."

Roxas felt color flood his cheeks. "Don't call me---"

Kairi made a little whimpering sound, and they both turned their gazes back on her. It seemed that she finally found her voice. "A--are," she paused, looking very bewildered. "Are...you for real?"

Roxas stepped away from Sora.

The brunet raised an eyebrow, and glanced down at himself. "Last time I checked, I was."

Quick as a flash Kairi had gotten to her feet and ran at Sora, flinging her arms around him and tackling him to the soft grass, tears sparkling in the morning sun as she did. Roxas was glad he had stepped away as he made his way back over to them, smiling approvingly.

"You're here, you're here," the auburn-locked Princess was saying over and over again, with her head on his chest and her arms around his neck.

Sora had closed his eyes and tucked her head under his chin, with his own arms wrapped tightly around Kairi. Amazingly, he was crying too, probably out of happiness.

Roxas choked at the fluffiness of it all.

Hm. Sora's Plan had worked...although Roxas thought it was a waste of time.

▫_three hours earlier_▫

"Roxas, Roxas, wake up!"

Roxas shifted, and wriggled deeper into the warmth of his blankets, praying so hard that the person who was shaking him awake (who was probably Axel, the conniving best friend that he was) would just go away and leave him alone.

"Roxas ---"

"Go away, it's a Saturday and I want to sleep in," he mumbled into his pillow.

"Ro_xaaaaassss..._"

"I told you---" he paused. Axel never whined when dealing with Roxas; usually, it was Roxas who did the whining. He blinked and peeked out from under his covers.

Roxas would've screamed if Sora had not stuffed his fist halfway down his throat. Okay, that might've been an exaggeration, but still.

"What the _hell_ are you doing here?" he blinked, and paused. "What the hell am _I_ doing here?"

Sora hovered over him with his sky-blue eyes big and mischievous and freakin' scary. Considering that Roxas himself had killed the owner of those eyes, it was scary indeed.

The brunet put a finger to his own lips and got to his feet, motioning to Roxas to follow him out. He sat up and rubbed his forehead, feeling a bewildered headache coming on. Surveying the room, he almost fell out of his bed when he saw Naminé sleeping peacefully on the bed opposite his.

Resisting the urge to yell out loud and run around in screaming circles, he hurried outside his room and quietly shut his door.

Sora greeted him with a loud cheer and a huge grin. "I don't know how, and right now I don't care. Kairi's sleeping in the room I woke up in, and I want to surprise her."

Roxas blinked. "Dude, she's going to be surprised if she just sees you."

"C'mon, please?" he pressed on, turning his eyes into puppy ones. It suddenly hit Roxas on how effective his puppy-eyes were, since staring at Sora was like staring at a mirror. "Please, Roxas? I mean, it's my birthday! Please?"

He sighed, and slapped his forehead. "Fine. Wait until I get over my shock, then fine."

The grin Sora had on his face was enough to power Halloweentown the whole Christmas season.

"Okay, okay," he said hyperly, as if he had just woken up from a nap rather than from death-fading into Roxas. "I just cast sleep on her. Portal us over into Destiny Islands and I'll explain on the way..."

--

"Now what?" Roxas asked irritably as he and Sora crouched among the bushes that were right underneath Kairi's window.

"Wait for her to wake up then tell her you two're going to Disney Castle, y'know, 'cause I'm supposed to be dead," Sora explained with the energy one would not associate with somebody who was supposed to be dead. "Riku's back in the Castle that Never Was, so make up some kind of excuse or something. Act sad. Look gloomy and furrow your eyebrows like you usually do."

"I can't act!" he said indignantly.

"Yes, you can, you're a Nobody!" the brunet shot back. "Now---wait, there's a centipede on your shoulder, let me--"

Roxas panicked (for centipedes were not his cup of tea, thank you very much) and hurriedly brushed it off, making a ruckus in the process for the hundred-legged worm was thrown right at Sora, who he found out had a large aversion to those things.

They froze (with centipede escaping underfoot) when Kairi threw her windows open. Sora prodded Roxas repeatedly until he got the message that he was to portal up to her room _now_.

So he did, and the charade started.

"Kairi? What're you doing?"

▫_present_▫

Sighing, Roxas slapped his gloved hand to his forehead at the surrealness of it all. Here he was, watching as Sora and Kairi hugged on the green grass of Disney Castle's courtyard, when he himself was supposed _not_ to exist anymore. What happened? Last thing he remembered was saying goodbye to Naminé...

"Well, some_body_ had gone over the top with the PDA."

Kairi suddenly sat up, and Sora propped himself up on the grass on his elbows. Roxas looked over his shoulder to find a smirking Riku standing behind him. The platinum-haired boy walked up to his side and cocked his head thoughtfully. "Get a room," he drawled.

Kairi blushed with a previously unknown shade of red while Sora's mouth dropped open. The brunet carefully sat up and then got to his feet, mouth working indignantly.

"_That_," Roxas managed to get out between chuckles, "Is priceless, Riku."

"I try, Roxas," he replied before grinning. He turned to face Sora once again and his grin mellowed into a smile. "Nice to see you back."

Sora mutely extended a hand. Riku took it with his opposite one and they shook hands. Somewhere in the middle the two boys were hugging each other tightly and Riku's voice was cracking and Sora was grinning and crying at the same time.

"I missed you," Riku was saying, eyes gratefully shadowed by his long silver bangs. "Honest to God, I really did miss you."

Sora pulled back and beamed a shaky smile, swiping at the edges of his eyes. "You should've."

They laughed together, and Kairi clasped her hands in happiness as she joined in the hug.

Roxas sighed wistfully and took a step back, leaning against Sora's headstone. It was like intruding into a very private moment --- although he had spent more than a year with these people, he still felt like a stranger. After all, the trio had shared a colorful past. He himself had no past to speak of, so he was understandably sad.

After a few minutes of just basking in the knowledge that Sora was back, impatience got the best of Roxas and he voiced out loud his curiosity. "Does anybody know how exactly I'm still here?"

Sora furrowed his eyebrows, tapping a finger against his chin. Kairi alternated her gaze between the three of them. Riku just smiled and put a hand on his hip.

"You never did ask me for help, Roxas," the platinum-haired Wielder slowly said. "I was watching the whole time..."

- - - - - - - - - - -

Axel ran soundlessly across the Colonnade, going unnoticed by the three Wielders and one Princess of Heart. Well, Roxas' eyes had darted in his direction more than once, and the corners of the blonde's mouth were upturned into a ghost of a smile.

It had caused quite an uproar when the blonde flaxen-haired girl had walked, yawning, into the kitchen earlier, demanding breakfast. Lexaeus, who had been scrambling eggs, stared at Naminé for a good five minutes before setting down a plate of eggs in front of her with directions for the toast.

She was halfway through breakfast when Larxene asked her casually if she had had a good night's sleep. Naminé probably remembered what had happened to her (and the fact that she was supposed to be gone forever) judging from the way she blanched. Xemnas then portalled into the kitchen, asking why Kairi was in the room next to Roxas'.

As if it wasn't enough, Rinoa, wings spread wide and amber irises bleary, appeared on the stool next to Naminé in a flash of feathers.

Understandably, the kitchen burst into chaos.

Zexion then entered the picture, and soon enough, they calmed down enough somewhat to try and find where Sora, Riku, Roxas, and Kairi might be.

Naminé led them to Disney Castle. Unfortunately, they had to get through manually; the Cornerstone had been partially reactivated --- alllowing them to enter but preventing the use of the Corridors.

So now Axel was running. He wasn't really used to it; he was more of a portalling person.

He blinked, and skidded to a stop. The Cloaked Schemer was leaning against a pillar standing near the main stairs, staring fixatedly at nowhere.

"Zexion?"

The lilac-haired Nobody blinked, turned to him, and then resumed staring off into space. "Fifth floor, left wing, right stairs."

"Huh?"

He smiled. Honest-to-goodness _smiled_. "Don't play dumb. Now shoo; find her, and good luck."

Axel raised an eyebrow before nodding, and climbing the stairs. Zexion was sometimes just unreadable.

- - - - - - - - - - -

▫_ten hours earlier_▫

Riku watched sadly as both Roxas and Naminé faded into strands of light and back into the two figures lying on the marble. Swiping a hand to the edge of his eyes, he walked over to Sora and Kairi, wondering what he was to do next.

They never even asked him for help.

He sighed and he turned back to where he was standing earlier, beside the entrance to the Addled Impasse. "You two can come out now," he called loudly, knowing that there was no way on earth that Sora and Kairi would wake up so instantly.

A few seconds later a sheepish Rinoa and a blank-faced Zexion walked out of the shadows.

"Aheh, forgot you were a bloodhound too," the ebony-haired sorceress laughed weakly, coming to a stop next to him. Zexion followed wordlessly, eyes scrutinizing the two. "So..."

"...I guess it's over," Riku supplied, peering at his two best friends lying unconscious on the cold marble floor. "Idiots, all of them. Roxas was a close friend. Naminé was too."

"Well, the things you do for love," Rinoa said, putting her hands on her hips.

"Wait," he said, cocking an eyebrow in their direction. "Why're you here, anyway?"

"I wanted to check out a book from the Library. Zexion here was there, apparently debating with himself if he should go after Roxas or not, who just asked him if he knew where Kairi was," she explained, all in a span of ten seconds.

Zexion let out a noise of outrage. "I thought we agreed on no mind-reading!"

"I wasn't reading your mind, I was reading _you_. Besides, I can't read your mind even if I wanted to."

"Why not?" asked Riku curiously.

"I don't know," she shook her head. "He's strong in darkness, and I can't read Heartless minds. Weird."

Riku turned to number Six and smiled. "You're the most powerful in darkness in the Organization, right?"

"Just as you are, together with Sora and Kairi," he shot back, arms folded but looking happy all the same.

True. Even if Sora had the most powerful Heartless inside him, the brunet Keyblade Master still didn't know how to control it. Riku, however, had mastered the use of Xehanort, so technically Riku was the stronger one with the use of darkness.

"Oh, pssh," Rinoa snorted derisively. "I'm more powerful than the two of you combined."

"We know," he and Zexion said tonelessly, before bursting into laughter.

Riku eyed the lilac-haired Nobody laughing quietly beside him. He had never known Zexion could show emotion, much less _laugh_. Being a Somebody for a short period of time changed him a lot, and Riku thought it suited him pretty well. However, with showing emotions brought a certain kind of weakness...

"Y'know," Rinoa was saying, waving a hand to silence them, "I can bring both Roxas and Naminé back."

Riku stopped mid-laugh. "You can?"

She shrugged. "As long as it doesn't involve life, sure."

"How?" Zexion cut in, looking apprehensive.

"Riku takes on Roxas' responsibility," she explained, ignoring the strangled sounds Riku was making. "I know, light is supposed to control darkness, but technically it's much easier for darkness to control darkness. And then, Zexion, you have to guide Sora, just in case Riku can't take it."

Riku glanced at Zexion. "What do you mean guide Sora?"

The Cloaked Schemer brushed back his waterfall of hair, and Riku understood immediately.

"You'll have to sacrifice a great deal of energy and power, not to mention freedom," Rinoa continued, face turning serious. "You'll have to stay close to Sora all the time if you want to conserve energy. You'll be aware of his antiform every single waking moment, just like Roxas. However, by taking on his job, Roxas will be able to exist with a normal life.

"And you, Zexion...Just in case Riku fails, you're the secondary firewall, or something like that. Or the other way around; you and Riku can talk about this." She laughed. "It's very dangerous --- Sora does have a powerful Heartless. Once it reforms it'll come back with a vengeance, and it'll become progressively harder to deal with."

Riku shrugged. "Sure. I'll do it."

Rinoa blinked. "Uh... very dangerous? Doesn't ring a bell?"

"I'm in," Zexion added, uncrossing his arms. "Sounds good to me."

She shook her head exasperatedly. "Unbelievable. Just unbelievable."

"So, what do we have to do then?" Riku pressed on, becoming more and more excited yet nervous at the same time. He had no idea why, but the idea of trying to keep Antiform manageable sent adrenalin coursing through his veins.

Zexion was smiling again. "I want Thirteen and Fourteen back."

"Fine," Rinoa sighed. "You two'll be unconscious for a good thirty minutes after I bond you both to Sora. Let me ask you again: are you totally sure you want to do this?"

"Get on with it," Zexion cut in irritably.

Riku smirked as Rinoa's wings coalesced out of thin air and her chocolate-brown irises turned amber. "Let's do this."

He could swear he heard Zexion murmur something --- "We have a lot in common, Riku."

▫_present_▫

- - - - - - - - - - -

Zexion smiled wistfully as he started to climb up the steps where Axel had disappeared earlier, to get a better..._view_ of things.

The bonding was exhausting, and now he vaguely felt the darkness of Sora's antiform formingin Kingdom Hearts. No matter. He'd have to deal with it after Riku failed, anyway. Not that the platinum-haired Wielder would fail, anyway; Riku had one of the strongest hearts Zexion had ever seen.

It was true. He and Riku shared a lot in common.

They both could track scent, and they both had forgone their own feelings for the happiness of the girl they loved.

Riku gave up for Kairi, and Zexion gave up for Larxene.

For Zexion never really reverted to Ienzo in the first place; he had fought and won easily. He only pretended to be Ienzo so that he could stay close to Larxene --- he was devastated when Arlene took over, but what had to be done, had to be done...

He only swore to himself to kill Axel if the pyrokinetic hurt Larxene in any way.

Existing was a puzzle sometimes, and it was a puzzle Zexion didn't mind leaving unsolved.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Riku paused after explaining everything. He raised his head and sniffed.

Sora, Kairi and Roxas looked on with bewildered and bemused expressions on their faces.

The platinum-haired Wielder smirked, walked to a nearby tree, muttered an apology to the Creator, and punched the tree trunk hard.

Understandably, it sent Naminé tumbling down from the branch where she was sitting on, eavesdropping earlier. Riku caught her before she landed on the ground and slung her over his shoulder, ignoring her indignant protests.

Kairi and Sora burst into laughter, with the redhead gushing about how Naminé was back and everything. Roxas was watching her with a particuarly bug-eyed expression on his face.

"Ri_kuuu_," she whined, and whined some more, pounding her fists on his back, giggling uncontrollably all the time. "Put me _down_!!"

Naminé was the one who told the Organization to search Disney Castle first; she remembered that it was Sora's birthday today, and Kairi and Roxas were very likely to visit his grave. She guessed the brunet Wielder had hatched some Plan, knowing the way his mind worked and such.

Riku picked her up from his shoulder and passed her to a blushing Roxas' arms, with an annoying smirk growing on his face. "There you go, Rox. One sneaky blondie."

Roxas shifted, setting her down gently on her feet. "I thought you were asleep, Naminé."

She smiled mischeviously, peering up at the spiky-haired boy and at his stormy blue eyes. "I _was_..." she paused, and then continued with the sweetest voice she had ever dared to use. "I just didn't want to miss out on the _action_."

Naminé didn't like that particularly predatory gleam that suddenly shone in Roxas' eye.

"Action, huh?"

"Y--" she was suddenly cut off as she found herself pinned to the nearest tree with number Thirteen kissing her quite roughly. Naminé smiled against his kiss, and by doing so, allowed his tongue to slip inside her lips. Mhmm. Roxas, unsurprisingly, tasted a lot like Sea-Salt ice cream. Good stuff.

She could hear Riku pretend to gag loudly.

- - - - - - - - - - -

On the one-hundredth forty-two step, Axel paused, panted, and released his chokehold on the balustrade. He's going to _kill_ Zexion for not telling him that she was up in one of the _main_ towers of Disney Castle. Not only did he have to climb almost five hundred steps to get up to the fifth floor, he had to climb up an additional hundred-ish steps on the stupid _spiral_ staircase. Not only was he dizzy, but exhausted to boot.

_No matter_, he thought, perking up almost immediately at the sight of a black-coated figure on the balcony just across him. _It's worth it._

Axel paused for a moment to catch his breath once more ---Zexion's _so_ dead---, and in that moment the figure spoke.

"They look so happy, don't they?" Larxene asked in his general direction, voice cracking.

He walked up to stand two feet from her. She was leaning on the balcony railing, head tilted and arms folded on the white marble. The two long blonde strands sticking up from her head danced in the breeze.

"Larx...You just ran off..." his voice trailed away, remembering how number Twelve squeaked on sight of the happy reunion, and practically sped off into the distance wordlessly.

"I...I was jealous...like I could even _feel_ jealous," she laughed weakly, "You know? They...sheesh...go away..."

Axel stepped closer, and saw the blonde girl's shoulders droop visibly. "C'mon, Larx, snap out of it..." he put a hand on her shoulder and forced her to face him. She looked away, hands clasped together and clenched so hard her knuckles were white. "Please?"

"What about you, Axel?" she asked softly, closing her eyes. "Why're you here? Why'd you care so much for me?"

He sighed. "Because I love you, idiot."

She snorted derisively, but her voice was shaky when she spoke. "...are you in love with _me_, or are you in love with the idea of falling in love?"

Axel grinned, and wiped away a tear as delicately as possible with a steady finger. He then hooked said finger under her chin and tilted her head up, before stealing a kiss.

"That answer enough, Sparky?"

"_Don't_ call me Sparky, stupid pyro," she muttered, before bursting into quiet tears, sobbing into Axel's coat as she did.

Smiling, he tucked her head under his chin and wrapped his arms around the Savage Nymph.

Yes. Life was good. Maybe he wouldn't have to kill Zexion after all. _This_ was worth all the seven-hundred something steps he had climbed.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Finally, Roxas and Naminé came up for air. Sora could almost see Roxas' face split from the grin he was sporting. Naminé, on the other hand, was blushing spectacularly.

Riku had a look of mixed amusement and disgust on his own face.

Kairi had attached herself to his arm (not that he minded) and was beaming happily, interspersed with random giggles.

Sora allowed himself another smile. After all that had happened, it was hard to believe that all of them were here, smiling, laughing, having a reunion and everything.

His Nobody caught his eye, and Sora understood what Roxas was planning to do. They both smirked and nodded at the same time. Kairi had let go of his arm and was now eyeing the two of them apprehensively.

Naminé was apparently thinking of the same thing. She slowly backed away from Roxas. "What ---"

"Now!" Sora grinned as he picked up Kairi bodily. Roxas did the same with Naminé, and they simultaneously threw the two girls into the fountain. Riku rolled his eyes and then joined in the laughter.

"Sora! You bum!" Kairi spluttered indignantly, coughing in the two-foot deep crystal-clear water of the marble fountain. "That was just uncalled for!"

Naminé just broke the water's surface and shook her head, spraying water everywhere. "Ro_xiiiie_!" She called, making the blonde boy blush scarlet. "Unfair!"

Sora caught Roxas' eye again, and they burst into laughter.

Unfortunately, they were too busy laughing to notice Riku sneaking up behind them. The platinum-haired boy pushed them with so much force that they both tumbled into the fountain, splashing into the water right beside the girls.

Sora looked up into his best friend's smirking face, and jutted out his lower lip in a pout. "Traitor!"

"Yeah! I thought you were on _our_ side!" Roxas echoed, blonde spikes still managing to defy water.

"Ahhh..." Naminé said dreamily, "A real gentleman _always_ sides with the ladies, right, Kairi?"

The redhead nodded, and Sora resisted the urge to dunk her under the water. Instead, he burst into laughter once more. Roxas stared at him for a second before joining in, and soon enough, they were all laughing like they had never laughed before.

It was nice, to be able to laugh once again, after a year of angst and sorrow.

"What in the world is happening here?"

Sora blinked, and got to his feet, sobering instantly.

King Mickey was running up to them, Donald and Goofy right at his heels. Behind them, leaning on a pillar next to the stairs leading down to the Courtyard, was a Xemnas with his eyebrow raised.

Sora stepped out of the fountain, and glowered. Never mind that he was dripping water everywhere, and that it ruined the effect. He still glowered. And when Sora glowered, it was a frightening sight.

Mickey stopped short.

Silence reigned for a good five minutes. The tension was so thick that it could be cut through with a Keyblade. Dark Keyblade, if Sora could stand it.

The King broke the silence first. "So. It's true. You're back, Sora."

"Have a problem with that?" he shot back, scowling.

"I---I..." to Sora's surprise, Mickey went down on one knee and bowed his head. Donald and Goofy gasped, taking a step back, bewildered looks on their faces. The Reverse Keyblade flashed to life in the King's gloved hands, and he set in horizontally in front of him. "If you want, I will relinquish the throne and Keyblade to you to pay for what I've done."

Sora blinked, and took a step back, heart pounding.

Him..._King?_

Uhhh.

He bit his lip, realizing what King Mickey was trying to do.

"No; you keep both," he said slowly, not really believing that he had just been offered kingship, and that he had just refused it. His voice and resolved strengthened with every word, however. "You can't buy me off, _King_ Mickey. Anyway...you did it all for the safety of the realm of light..."

King Mickey's face turned hopeful, but the look on Sora's face quickly made it fade away.

"...but don't expect me to forgive you, or to forget this, in my lifetime," Sora finished in a steely voice.

The Reverse Keyblade was dismissed, and Mickey stood up.

He nodded mutely in silent agreement.

- - - - - - - - - - -

Rinoa sighed, and flexed her wings open. She then stretched her arms out and yawned. Seriously, bonding was something she had not done in a long time, and it took a _hell_ of a lot of energy.

"Okay, my job here is done!" she chirped happily from their perch on the Castle's highest roofdeck.

Beside her, Zexion raised an eyebrow. "You barely did anything, Rinoa," he remarked, looking down into the scene in the courtyard below. He was leaning on the railing, with elbows on the marble.

"Eh? Does telling you guys how to control Sora's darkness barely count as anything?" she asked bemusedly.

Zexion pillowed his head in his arms, looking more depressed than anything. He shrugged, shooting Rinoa an exasperated look.

"Anyway..." Rinoa raised her head to look up into the sky, smiling slightly. "I have a Halloween Dance to arrange."

With that, she bid Zexion goodbye and portalled off.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

-_ano hino chikai wo ima mo? - _do you remember the promise we made? -

Hell, that was long. See? It's a happy chapter.

I brought Roxas and Naminé back. Yay. Only for them to kick the bucket again in the sequel. Maaaybe.

One more left. Yay. It's the Halloween Dance. And it's still happy...I think.

Happiness...

**skitty 2004**the continuation to your fic is coming soon. I'm still working on it; sooo sorry for taking so long.

Anyway, 400th review gets another fic. Yay.

Read and review; flames are welcome.


	35. Peace

**A/N: **SORRY THIS THING TOOK SO DAMN LONG, I had some...serious issues to attend to. Anyway, this is the last chapter. Yay for all.

Warnings for fluff. Lots of it.

**Disclaimer: **If I owned KH, this'd be KHIII. Sora/Antiform would be final boss, and both Riku and Kairi would be playable characters. Rinoa would be in it. Roxas would kick ass. And everything else.

- - - - - - - - - - -

**P**_e_**a**_c_**e**

- - - - - - - - - - -

-

**T** r **i** n **i** t **y** E **n** d

**Sora**_Kairi_

_-a tribute to unbreakable love-_

-

N **o **b **o **d **y **E **n **d

**Roxas**_Naminé _

_-a tribute to loving against all odds-_

-

_-_You Don't Miss It 'till It's Gone-

-

"Go on, touch it, hold it, do anything."

Roxas bit his lip nervously and did as he was told, reaching out a gloved hand to clasp the golden hilt of the ceremonial sword. Fortunately for him (and for King Mickey) he only felt the blank coldness of the metal. No darkness. No light either. Roxas seriously doubted that the monarch would attempt a stunt like that ever again, anyway.

"Well?" Naminé asked curiously, peering up at him, hands resting on the library table.

"It's just a sword," he replied, withdrawing his hand and settling his gaze on King Mickey.

The monarch smiled gleefully. "I told ya so. C'mon, let's go, the Court's waiting."

Roxas nodded mutely, following the King out the Library. He slowed his pace until Naminé caught up with him, and they walked in companionable silence down the Colonnade.

"Now, as a knight, you two'll be granted your own RTA's and special access to the Gummi Ship Network, among other things," King Mickey explained as he trotted along in front of them, the crown on his head bouncing. "All the Kingdom asks is that you remain loyal to it at all times, and that you protect Disney Kingdom when it comes under a threat."

Roxas tilted his head backward and stared at the ceiling. Disney Castle was probably all but invincible now, having the protection of four Keyblade Masters. Sure, Sora hated King Mickey, but the brunet hated _only_ King Mickey, so he was still set on guarding Disney Kingdom. The monarch had played his cards right.

"Uhm, King Mickey?" the flaxen-haired girl next to him asked timidly. "Are you sure we can be knighted? I mean, we're Nobodies and everything..."

He stared at Naminé, and then at the King.

"Welp, don't worry about it," he waved a gloved hand dismissively. "You two have done more than enough to be Knighted, and that's it."

"Oh." A pause. "Okay."

They continued walking until they reached the double doors of the Audience Hall, beside which stood two armored guards, who tensed at the sight of their king at once.

"Sorry, but this is where you guys go in," King Mickey said, turning around to face them, expression earnest. "Tradition, the works..."

Naminé nodded hastily. Roxas noticed she had been much more nervous about this whole thing...maybe because they were going to be knighted in front of a very large crowd, and the flaxen-haired Nobody had an aversion for large crowds.

The King spun on his heels and walked on, ceremonial sword on his shoulder.

"Hey, King Mickey!" Roxas yelled, making the mouse stop short. He didn't miss the glare one of the soldiers sent his way for calling the attention of the King so casually. Whatever. "Don't forget the thing we talked about!"

He heard the King laugh, and he saw him nod. He then continued on until he rounded the corner and disappeared.

Naminé turned to him, looking rather clueless. "What was that?"

Roxas just grinned. "You'll see."

"Roxaaaasss," she started to whine, but she was cut off by the very loud, very fake cough of one of the breastplated guards.

The sound of trumpets being blown in perfect harmony echoed from behind the closed doors, and Naminé clutched his black sleeve almost convulsively. He could almost hear the guard who had glared at him smirk at the display.

"Nam..." he said quietly, gently prying her hand from its deathgrip on his sleeve and setting it down properly on his arm, just as Queen Minnie had instructed them to do earlier. This knighting business had to have a lot of practice, he found out. From walking down the audience hall to how to kneel properly --- he and Naminé had gone through a crash course on that only a few hours ago.

"Okay, get ready," the other guard said cheerfully, looking much, much more approachable than his comrade. "Good luck!"

His circulation was almost cut off by the deathgrip in which Naminé's fingers had curled up around his arm. Roxas sighed resignedly and let the girl be.

The guards threw the doors open.

Roxas was momentarily frozen at the sight of so many people crowded in one place; all of them which were staring at him and Naminé right now. Okay. Stage fright attack.

He took a deep breath, and started walking, having to tug more than once to get Naminé moving.

"Relax, Nam," he muttered under his breath as he tried to keep his face solemn. Naminé had blanched an impossible shade of white, but nevertheless, she kept on walking on the red carpet.

Various people were crowded along their path. Some openly stared; others even craned their necks for a better look. Somewhere in the middle he saw Leon and that ninja girl, together with a pretty brunette woman clad in pink. People were just speechless; they had not expected somebody who was supposed to be dead (i.e, Naminé) to be walking down the Audience Hall looking quite healthy. It was expected, because King Mickey had arranged for their Knighting only the night after they had reunited in the main Courtyard. Sora and Naminé had been advised to stay out of the limelight, until Roxas, Riku and Kairi figured out the right way to tell the world that two supposedly dead people were, well, back from the dead.

The Knighting was perfect; it would announce to the Kingdom that they were back, and the Halloween Dance right after would announce to the rest of the world that.

A few steps on, right before the throne, Roxas couldn't help but break into a grin.

The whole Organization XIII was ranged on either side, according to number, and each and every one of them had a bemused smile on their face. It was like having a black-coated guard of honor.

Next to the Organization were the Princesses of Heart, Cinderella, Aurora and Belle on the right, Alice, Snow White, and Jasmine on the left. Each was wearing their respective outfits, and they were just gazing upon them. Roxas blushed when the princess of Agrabah caught his eye, pointed to Naminé, and winked. King Mickey had informed them in advance of what was to happen.

Standing in front of the throne was King Mickey himself, a small smile on his face as he tapped a finger on the ceremonial sword held in his hands. Queen Minnie stood on the dais behind him, a look of approval on her face.

Roxas unlinked arms with Naminé, and they stood less than a foot from each other. He stole a nervous glance at her, and he felt his hypothetical heart skip a beat. She was smiling magnificently as she caught his eye.

Fire danced on his cheeks as King Mickey spoke. The chattering around the Audience Hall immediately fell quiet.

"My friends, today, we celebrate the courage and the strength of those who serve the realm of Light..."

Roxas choked. Realm of light? What the heck! Nobodies served no realm, as far as he knew!

"...even if they are of twilight." King Mickey hesitated, directing a glance at them. "I have learned that although Nobodies might have no hearts...they have souls, by which they judge, and by which they remember to feel."

Little whispers broke throughout the hall, and Roxas bit his lip.

"I know this," the King held up a hand to silence them, "Because these Nobodies are willing to sacrifice."

He pointed a gloved hand to the double doors. Said double doors burst open to reveal a sheepishly grinning Sora, with a blushing Kairi, their arms linked together. Behind them was a smirking Riku, silver hair shimmering in the Materia light of the Hall.

The Audience Hall fell deathly quiet.

Some of the women, even some of the men swooned. The brunette lady with green eyes and pink jacket was one of them, and a spiky-haired blonde rushed out of nowhere to catch her.

"Roxas and Naminé brought them back," King Mickey continued. "And for that, for their sacrifice, the Kingdom owes them no less than knighthood."

Still quiet.

Roxas gulped.

Sora and Riku flanked Kairi as the trio walked up the carpet. Kairi stood behind Roxas and Naminé, while Riku walked to the right. Sora walked slowly to their left, right next to Xemnas. Both Wielders turned to face them, the silver-haired one's expression a smirk, while the brunet's a frown.

The Superior nodded, and King Mickey raised the sword.

Roxas and Naminé knelt simultaneously, touching one knee to the scarlet-carpeted floor. They bowed their heads and cold sweat dripped down Roxas' back. He couldn't help but feel extremely nervous -- after Sora's disastrous Knighting, getting knighted himself kind of lost its appeal.

"By the power vested upon me by this court, I, King Mickey --- "

Roxas closed his eyes and forced back the urge to shiver. His breath sounded abnormally loud in his ears.

" --- with the light drawn by the seven Princesses of Heart --- "

He gasped as light shone through his eyelids, and he clutched at the carpet as what he had been told later was a crown outline of light burst from the floor. Sure, Kairi had told him earlier that it was just for show, but still...

King Mickey brought down the sword's blade flat on his left shoulder.

"I dub thee, Sir Roxas Dalmasca --- " ...and on his right.

He let out an unwilling smile as he heard Naminé gasp from beside him. Opening one eye he stole a glance at the girl; she had snapped her head up and was now staring at King Mickey.

Earlier that day he had taken the King by the side and asked if he and Naminé could switch surnames. If Naminé let go of the Dalmasca surname it'll be one less thing that made her similar to Kairi, and that was something the flaxen-haired girl would greatly appreciate. King Mickey had agreed, and had their names changed.

" --- and I dub thee", sword on left shoulder, "Lady Naminé," and then tap flat on her right, " --- Hikari."

King Mickey inclined his head, and resheathed the sword. "I now present to you, the two new Knights of Disney Castle!"

To his surprise, the Superior was the first to start clapping. The Organization followed (with a huge smile on Axel's face), and soon, the whole Audience Hall erupted into stunned applause.

Roxas stood up and grinned, turning to face Naminé, who had just stood up as well. She stared at him for a few seconds before smiling widely at the crowd, who was now clapping quite enthusiastically.

"The Dance of Light is traditionally played to celebrate every Knighting," That was Demyx's - what the heck was _he_ doing? - voice echoing through the Hall, he was sure of that. "May we request the new knights to start this dance..."

Music started to play, and all the Materia in the hall dimmed, leaving the focus on them. Roxas blinked, surprised, the flaxen-haired girl did the same, throwing him a bewildered look. He vaguely recognized the music as the orchestrated version of the song Naminé was very fond of singing...

_Passion..._

"Well," he cleared his throat nervously as he stepped up to the cerulean-eyed Nobody. "Lady Naminé," he extended a slightly bent arm, "Would you like to dance with me?"

She blushed brightly, but settled her hand lightly on his arm all the same. "Sir Roxas, I'd love to," she softly answered, and together they walked into the middle of the dance floor.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

Naminé breathlessly put her right hand on the blonde boy's shoulder, and he took her other hand in his own as music played. She hoped she wouldn't step on his toes or do something equally embarrassing.

She noticed with a gasp that the flute soloist playing was, of all people, Riku. Demyx was the conductor, and Larxene was with the violinists. They had planned this...the silver-haired Wielder was actually a very good flutist, and Naminé had to snap herself back to reality, narrowly missing stumbling over her own feet.

"Don't worry," Roxas whispered suddenly, "I'll catch you if you fall."

She smiled as they continued twirling on the dance floor, and she started to lose herself in his stormy blue eyes...

Never mind if she didn't have a heart. Number Thirteen made up for all that and more. Here was the Nobody so much like her; born without memories of his other self, struggling to find meaning for his existence, confused about what the _hell_ he was doing on this realm. She was dancing in his arms, and that was enough.

The music suddenly took on a faster, more lively beat, and the Melodious' Nocturne's voice filled the Hall once more. "All the knights are welcome to join the Dance of Light---"

Sora and Kairi were the first to come down, with the redhead pulling the brunet spiky-haired boy down onto the dance floor. Soon more and more knights were coming down, and miraculously, all of them started to move in exact precision, turning around and stepping at the same time. It was beautiful to watch, and Naminé was glad when Roxas subconsciously pulled her closer. Finally, after being lost in nothingness for so long, she had found her light.

Roxas.

The piece ended, and fireworks exploded into trails of fiery brilliance across the night sky.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

"Well," Sora mused, stepping through Riku's portal, "That went pretty well. At least King Mickey didn't try to pull any tricks like the last one." He unlaced his hands and blinked, a bit surprised at the fact that Twilight Town was still...sunset. Although it was something like seven in the evening. This World never failed to unnerve him.

"Ah, he knows better than to do that," his best friend said nonchalantly as he closed the portal with a wave of his hand. "Say, Roxas. Don't tell me that's your costume for the Halloween bash..."

The blonde boy grinned. "Fine. I won't tell you that this is my costume."

Riku slapped a hand to his forehead.

Roxas held up his hands defensively. "Hey! We decided that we're going to come as who we are."

Sora stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder. "We?"

"He means us, kid," Xigbar's voice floated over to them, and Sora furrowed his eyebrows in surprise. Organization XIII were stepping out of their respective portals, all of whom were dressed in their trademark black coat.

"Can't miss a good party, you know?" Demyx added cheerfully.

"You're all coming?" Sora asked in a strangled voice. "Uh..."

Kairi tilted her hear thoughtfully as she brushed off the hem of her dress. "Don't worry. After Roxas and Naminé duked it out in the quad, Nam never bothered to chain anybody's memories down. Took some time, but the Academy finally accepted that Organiztion XIII really did exist. They even gave them teaching jobs."

"Huh?" he managed to choke out. "Roxas and Naminé...fought?"

Kairi blinked, and patted him comfortingly on the back. "Oh, some things happened while you were berserk and all...you'll know soon enough."

"They..._got accepted_?" he pressed on, bewildered. "Shut up and stop laughing at me, guys."

"Whatever," Riku waved a hand dismissively, eyes sparkling with amusement. "What about you, Naminé? Is that what you're wearing?"

The flaxen-haired girl blushed. "Yeah," she replied softly, unconsciously straightening the straps of her white sundress. "I'm crafting my Keyblades again later."

"You look great," the siver-haired Wielder complimented, making Naminé blush even redder.

"Sora, nice getup," Roxas said loudly, putting a possesive arm around the memory witch's shoulders and throwing Riku a Look. "Who did it?"

He smiled a little; he didn't plan on changing his clothes from the Knighting. He had on a longsleeved, high-collared white shirt embroidered with a crown on the breast, white trousers, and tan boots. The coolest part was the snow-white cloak, which was fastened at the neck with a silver key brooch. His mythril (Rinoa had told him so) crown necklace dangled around his neck. "This is actually the traditional Knight outfit of Disney Castle, and he (for Sora swore never to say the King's name unless absolutely needed) gave Riku and I one. It also makes a good Halloween costume."

The blonde Nobody then threw another glare at Riku before speaking, "Then why aren't you in the knight thing?"

The silver-haired Wielder shrugged. "Duh. Kairi's dressed as a princess, therefore, Sora's her one and only knight. I don't want to ruin the pairing, Rox. Besides..." he bared his teeth, revealing elongated canines, "Vampires get more girls."

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Perv."

"Am not," Riku smirked. "You're just jealous that I can look so good."

"I am _not_!"

"Are we going to go to the party now?" Naminé cut in testily, and Kairi quietly laughed at the scandalized looks on both boys' faces.

Sora suddenly realized something that made his heart rate increase a hundredfold. He tugged at his cloak nervously, feeling his face go pale. "Uh. Guys. Have you told people that Naminé and I are back?"

Kairi laughed nervously while exchanging glances with everyone else. Riku hid a smirk, while Axel put his hands on his hips and sighed. "Pssh, don't bother. Just waltz in there and let them see for themselves."

"Ahhh..."

"Come on, come on, let's go!" Larxene exclaimed, walking on ahead around the corner that hid Twilight Station Heights from view, Axel in tow. Cheers could be heard, but as all the Organization members came into view, the cheers died down. Probably the crowd was shocked that _all_ the infamous Thirteenth order came.

"I don't like this..." Sora said nervously once more, running a hand through his spiky hair. "What if someone passes out again?"

"Someone _is_ going to pass out again," Roxas reminded him. "You and Naminé are supposed to be dead, remember?"

Behind them, Riku growled. "Oh cut it and just go! I want to get there before it ends, you know!" And without warning, he took both Kairi and Naminé's hands and dragged them into the party. Of course, Sora and Roxas had no choice to follow (and wring Riku's neck later).

Station Heights looked amazing. Multicolored Materia were strung around the streetlamps of the Height's railing. Tables were clustered around the edge of the wide plaza. There was a stage in front of the entrance to the station, and a dance floor had been cleared in front of it. Off to the side was a buffet table and a makeshift bar. The decorations were done in shades of royal blue and ebony black.

_My favorite colors_, Sora thought, biting his lip as all the people in the dance swung their heads in synchronized motion towards them. If it wasn't so serious it would've been funny.

Selphie, as head of the dance committee (as Sora had figured), was stationed at the entrance, clipboard in her hands and pen in her fingers. Said pen dropped and rolled away into the cobbled floor at the same time as the brunette's jaw dropped.

"Okay, Selphie," Riku said boredly, not taking notice of any of their reactions, "Sign us in." He turned to face them, and counted them off. "Riku Alcaia, Roxas and Kairi Dalmasca, then Sora and Naminé Hikari."

The jade-eyed brunette passed out.

"Told you so," Roxas said cheerily, picking up the pen and signing in himself.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

"While you're at it, get me a tequila, will you?"

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Sora, get your own. And can't even drink, it's not legal."

The brunet pouted and cupped his chin in his palm. "Unfair, I'm already seventeen!" he said loudly, earning him a smack upside the head courtesy of Kairi, who told him off for even _thinking_ of getting drunk and everything.

He laughed and waved a hand dismissively, threading his way through the tables and stopping by their own, where Naminé was engaged in a game of spot-the-guy-who's-dressed-as-a-moogle with Demyx and Axel. Larxene was off somewhere, probably talking to other professors. Luxord, Vexen and Xigbar were on another bet involving what looked like a shotglass and a bottle of whiskey nicked from the bar. Lexaeus' chair was empty, probably at the buffet table and criticizing the food. Xaldin and Saïx were deep in conversation, with the blue-haired berserker occasionally making the table shake dangerously whenever he pounded his fist in it to make a point. Marluxia and Zexion were chatting animatedly as Roxas came up to them, just in time to see somebody dressed in a kimono tap number Six on the shoulder and drag him off to the dance floor. Marluxia just stared after him and shook his head bemusedly.

"Zexy seems to be popular today," he commented, smiling. "That's the fourth time our conversation's been interrupted."

Less than three seconds later Marluxia was the one being dragged off.

Roxas grinned to himself, before walking around the table to the flaxen-haired girl and placing a gloved hand on her bare shoulder. "Hey, want some punch?"

"I want some!" Axel piped up, smirking.

"I was asking Naminé," he rolled his eyes, before sighing resignedly and sticking out his tongue at his best friend. "Fine. What do you want?"

The pyro blinked, amazed at how Roxas had conceded. "Uh, just get me punch. With a liberal dose of rum," he nodded to himself. "Yeah."

"Me too!" Demyx chimed in.

Roxas slapped a hand to his forehead.

"Eh. I'll add in a glass of sparkling water, thank you," Naminé said quietly, a smile playing on her lips.

He smiled, and walked off in the direction of the mini-bar, wondering how on earth he's going to balance three glasses at once. The smile on his face widened into a grin when he saw Riku on one of the stools, talking with the bartender. Who happened to be Rinoa.

"Well, Riku, score with the ladies," he said, getting onto the stool next to the platinum-haired Wielder.

Riku laughed, and Rinoa threw him a bemused look. "I wish."

Roxas turned to the ebony-haired woman and tapped his fingers on the bar, staring at the glasses on the rack behind her. "Have any ginger ale?"

She smiled, and brought out one from under the bar. "Thought you'd never ask."

He took a swig, and set it down with a contented sigh. Riku swirled his own champagne in his fluted glass, alternating a stare between it and Rinoa. "So," Riku started. "I take it that you two know each other?"

Roxas nodded. "Yeah. She ran a bar here in Twilight Town."

"How'd you like it? The dance?" Rinoa asked dreamily. "7th Heaven is the caterer, and it's been a lot of work."

Riku coughed fakely into his glass, and sniggered.

"So fine, I used my powers to set everything up last night," the sorceress added resignedly, shooting Riku a glare. "But still! It's so hard to think of decorations and everything...I even gave up on my cos --- ."

"_Hiyaaaa!_"

Roxas whirled around so fast he almost fell off the stool, and his glass of ginger ale toppled over and fell behind the counter. Rinoa bent down to pick it up. A ridiculously large shuriken had just lodged itself right behind where he was sitting, so close that Roxas had felt the air ripple when it landed. Riku burst into laughter.

A petite girl with cropped black hair and equally black eyes bounced through the now-back-to-normal crowd, laughing. Hm. She was the girl from the Knighting earlier. "Grand Ninja Yuffie here!" She picked the shuriken up easily, and peered at the two of them.

"Let me guess," Riku said mockingly, pretending to be in deep thought. "You're dressed...as a ninja?"

Riku ducked to avoid the shuriken being swung at him, still laughing as he did.

Yuffie pouted and turned to Roxas. "Ah...I presume you're Roxas? You guys disappeared so quickly after the Dance of Light, we had to ask the King where you went. Where's Sora and the others? We wanna make sure he's really alive and everything..." she continued on, rambling.

He nodded nervously, stealing a glance at the very sharp edge of the shuriken dangling _much_ too close for his comfort. "Y-yeah..."

"Yuff, stop clowning around," a voice said, and Roxas broke his gaze at the shuriken just in time to see a tall, tanned and freakin' handsome (which made Roxas stop for a moment and glare enviously) man shoulder his way through the crowd, scar across the bridge of his nose and necklace dangling on his white shirt. A gunblade hung from his hip, sparkling in the Materia-light.

"Squall!" Yuffie whined, but retreated slightly all the same, letting the man press a chaste kiss to her forehead.

Roxas raised an eyebrow, and Squall threw him a Look to rival his own.

Jeez, the guy was scary.

"It's Leon, Yuffie," he sighed exasperatedly. "How many times do I have to tell you?"

Roxas blinked, realizing that Rinoa was taking way too much time to pick up his glass from behind the counter. He knelt on the stool and bent over, peering behind the bar and into the top of her head. "Hey, need some help?"

"Nah," Rinoa said softly, standing up and setting the glass on the counter, freezing at the sight of Leon smiling with his arm around Yuffie's small shoulders. "Oh."

Leon blinked. And blinked some more.

Riku moved the stool where he was sitting on a to a safer place about a foot away, taking his champagne glass with him. He regarded the whole scene with an apprehensive look in his eyes.

Roxas scrambled to the silver-haired Wielder's side, seeing that he was in a very awkward place, sandwiched between Rinoa and Leon.

Yuffie stared.

They stared at each other.

"Getting drunk so early?" Another voice asked bemusedly, and the brunette in pink appeared behind Leon, a smile curving her lips upward. It quickly faded at the sight of Rinoa.

"R-Rinoa?"

The ebony-haired sorceress' mouth twitched. "Aerith..." She then turned to Leon and Yuffie, and the man's hand tightened involuntarily on the ninja's shoulder. "You...you and her..." she stammered, fingers white on the countertop.

"Rinny, it's --- " Yuffie started fearfully.

"I...never thought..." Rinoa cut her off, tears shimmering in her eyes. Roxas was reminded, disturbingly, of Sora. "Squall..."

The brunet looked away, hazel eyes shadowed by strands of hair. "Rinoa..."

The girl's fingers suddenly curled up into fists on the countertop, and shimmering three-feet-long white wings sprouted out of her back, spraying feathers of pure sorceress power everywhere. The party hushed into a bewildered quiet as the students and professors turned to look at Rinoa, whose eyes had swirled into an amber color.

And for the first time since Roxas could remember, night fell on Twilight Town.

Rinoa seemed to catch herself, and an unconvincing smile worked itself onto her face. She waved her hands in front of her, wings folding themselves onto her back. "Eh! No worries!" she said loudly, pointing up into the night sky. "Just some Illusion I made, it's just an illusion! The wings are for show! Yeah!"

Roxas raised an eyebrow when he caught her eye, and Rinoa sighed.

"Fine!" She threw up her hands in frustration. "I'm Sorceress Rinoa Heartilly, Level Eight Black and White Mage!"

Silence reigned.

Someone fainted.

Then a voice rose out from somewhere around the Sora's table. "Cool!" Hayner said loudly, before Ollete jabbed him in the ribs.

And with Hayner's proclamation, the tension loosened, and the party started once again, the students laughing and stealing glances at a surprised Rinoa. Apparently, they didn't take a sorceress seriously.

"We thought you were dead," Yuffie said bluntly, running a slim finger across her shuriken's edge.

"Well. You thought wrong," Rinoa snapped, amber eyes accusing as she stepped out from behind the bar. She bit her lip, not meeting Leon's eye as she shouldered past the all of them, heading into the direction of the stage.

- - - - - - - - - - - -

"_Hey, people!_"

Sora popped the last piece of paopu into his mouth and turned his chair slightly in the direction of the makeshift stage. Rinoa was sitting on a bar stool in front, a microphone stand in front of her. The lights dimmed, and the Materia near the stage activated all at the same time.

"_Enjoying the dance?_" She asked, and was answered by a chorus of cheers.

"Eh, Sora?" Pence tapped his shoulder, and Sora leant back. "Is she really a sorceress?"

"Yeah."

"As in honest-to-goodness Worlds History sorceress? Sorceress War sorceress?"

"Yeah."

"Oh."

Sora smiled bemusedly as the photographer swiped at the nearest glass of water and downed it without a breath, still looking shaky even after he did.

"_Well, this song is a slow one, and dedicated to all those who'll be there for each other 'till the end!_" Rinoa said cheerfully into the mike, and Sora raised an eyebrow. The sorceress was as bipolar as he was...he raised his eyes and scanned the crowd for Leon and the others. The Radiant Garden Committee had seated themselves somewhere near the entrance, with Leon brooding and Yuffie frowning. Aerith was talking with Selphie, probably about the floral arrangements used.

"_When you walk away, you don't hear me say..._"

He blinked, heart skipping a beat at the familiar lines of song. The spotlight on the ebony-haired sorceress dimmed, and mood lighting illuminated the dance floor. Couples walked shyly to the middle of the plaza and started swaying to the music.

He turned to Kairi, who had just swallowed her piece of paopu fruit. She set her own fork down and smiled wistfully, tilting her head.

Roxas and Naminé brushed past their seats, with the blond spiky-haired Nobody blushing furiously. Naminé smiled at them before pulling number Thirteen farther down into the dance floor.

"Uhm," Sora said nervously, speaking to his paper napkin rather than to the Princess of Heart next to him, "Will you dance with me, Kairi?"

"_Simple and clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight..._

She stood up and took his hand in her warm one, pulling him to his feet. "Come on, lazy bum."

Sora smiled.

"_It's hard to let go._"

- - - - - - - - - - - -

"You know," Sora whispered into her ear as he pressed her closer to his chest, "This song has some pretty bad memories..."

Kairi closed her eyes and leant into him, breathing in his scent of paopu and ocean. She reclasped her hands behind his neck and sighed, knowing that it would take a long time for Sora to return to his normal self, after all that had happened. "Ah, that's all in the past now, Sora," she whispered back.

They had been simply swaying to the music for the better part of the song, content to be in each other's arms once again. If one could just pick a moment of time to freeze and keep forever, this would be it, Kairi decided.

"I know, but sometimes..." he sighed, and Kairi felt a shiver run down her back at the feeling of his breath, "It's just so hard to forget."

She pulled back slightly so that she could stare right into his sky-blue eyes. The boy blushed fire, and Kairi giggled. "You don't have to forget. You just have to learn from it. And I'll always be right here beside you...you know that, don't you?"

He bowed his head so that their foreheads were touching. "Yeah...Kairi?"

"Hmmm?" she managed to say, because she was becoming intoxicated with his scent so much that all she wanted was to kiss the living daylights out of him.

"Promise me something..."

"Yeah...?"

Sora smiled slightly, and ran a hand through her hair. "That you'll never forget me, whatever happens."

Kairi blinked. What did he mean...? Surely he wasn't planning on going off to some godforsaken place once again for an impossible mission?

But it was inevitable, she realized. Someone up there had chosen Sora as a Keyblade Master and had granted him great power and even greater responsibility. She had to let him be, in the end.

But, she decided as she gazed into his hopeful pools of sky blue, she won't let Sora go without a fight.

"Well, I'll promise, on one condition."

Sora's eyes widened a fraction of an inch. "What's that?" he asked, a hint of nervousness tinging his voice as he did. His arms subconsciously wrapped themselves tighter around her small frame.

"That you'll never forget _me_," she said with a smile. Sora tilted his head forwards in a nod, and his eyes once again shone with the light Kairi had extinguished long ago. She could feel his breath on her lips and his gaze on her own, and she clasped her hands tighter and pulled him closer.

"_Regardless of warnings the future doesn't scare me at all..."_

"I promise," they said at the same time, and sealed the pact with a kiss.

"_Nothing's like before._"

- - - - - - - - - - - - -

"Stop laughing, Nam," Roxas growled good-naturedly, pulling her along the tables to their own. The flaxen-haired girl was giggling uncontrollably, in a way disturbingly reminiscent of a patient in an asylum.

"Fine," she murmured before calming down, but her lips were still curved into a smile. Roxas smiled unwillingly as he scanned the venue for their table. Demyx was waving a hand energetically, signalling where they were.

"There you are, number Thirteen, Naminé," the Superior greeted, and gestured for them to sit down.

Roxas stared curiously at Xemnas, wondering why the Superior had them all called back to their table. Although he had a vague feeling he knew what it was, and if his hunch was right, it did not bode well for the realm of light.

"So," the silver-haired Nobody laced his gloved hands together in front of him, elbows on the blue linen of the table. "Everything in the realm of light has been restored...but it's not over yet. On the contrary, we're back at square one in our Kingdom Hearts business."

Roxas cheered slightly. Bingo. That was what he was thinking. Axel grinned at the prospect, and surprisingly, similar smiles had made their way onto every Organization member's face, including those who were not so sober anymore.

Xemnas paused, and caught the arm of a Rinoa passing by. The ebony-haired sorceress eyed them curiously, before putting her hands on her hips and smiling. "Hmm?"

"We need a favor," Xemnas started.

"As long as it's the right kind, sure."

Larxene choked on the cocktail she was sipping, and threw Rinoa an indignant look. The sorceress laughed and gestured for Xemnas to go on.

"Anyway. We need you to call Maleficent back from the darkness. Since Sora's Antiform is gone, we need somebody else to control the Heartless and send them after the Wielder, forcing him to slay the creatures and release hearts."

Roxas nodded, surprising himself. For once, Xemnas' plans actually seemed possible to work.

"Hell no," Rinoa growled immediately, gripping the back of the Superior's chair, an undescribable expression on her face. He remembered her encounter with that Leon guy earlier, and he shuddered involuntarily. "Bring back that witch? No way."

"Well..."

"Hel_lo_?" she continued, cutting him off. "You've got a sorceress here? Powers drawn from darkness? Ring a bell?"

Roxas was grateful the party was awfully noisy, so that the only ones who could really hear the conversation were those who were around the table.

Xemnas stared at her. "You're willing to help us?"

Rinoa shook her head, and smiled, an are-you-an-idiot smile. "No...People like me don't do favors. I do barter."

"Well, what do you want in exchange?"

The ebony-haired sorceress looked around, bent slightly, and lowered her voice as she explained her terms. All of them listened carefully, and more than one of them made a noise of objection as she did. However, when she had finished, all they could do was stare blankly at Rinoa. Axel let out a low whistle.

"You drive a hard bargain, sorceress," Xemnas finally said slowly, leaning forward on the table.

"Take it, or leave it, Xemnas," she said cheerfully, straightening up. The shadow of a predatory scowl flashed across her face when the Organization started to discuss whether they should accept her terms or not.

"Well, it's only --- "

"Sure, it may be only that, but who knows what might happen --- "

"Compared to what we're asking, that's just peanuts. And not very good ones at that."

"Ew, peanuts?" Naminé cringed, leaning away from Demyx. "Why peanuts?"

It was Roxas himself who ended the discussion. "Do we have any other choice? Or have you guys another plan?"

Nods of general assent.

"Everybody agrees?"

Nod. Thirteen nods.

"_Everybody?_"

Fourteenth nod.

"It's settled then!" Rinoa cried happily, clapping her hands. "Consider it done! Now, any of you want drinks?"

Amidst the chorus of various choices of drinks and tonics, Naminé turned to Roxas, a curious expression on her face. She tilted her head thoughtfully, clutching at the paper napkin on the table she had been folding into a crane while she was listening to Rinoa. "Roxas?"

"Yeah?"

"Why are we doing this?"

Roxas smiled, and took the paper crane from her hands, fingering the lines and creases absentmindedly before setting it down on the table. "Because we're supposed to be the bad guys, Nam, and we have a reputation to live up to..."

A small breeze picked up, and blew the crane a tad too close to the candles clustered in the middle of the table, making it burst into flame. In an instant, the crane was just a pile of curled-up, blackened paper, still smoldering.

Naminé giggled once more.

- - - **end **- - -

Finally. Finished and whatever. WITH A CLIFFIE. Y'know, like KHI. Ooooh, how I wish this was a real game.

I'll take a breather first (maybe a week or so. Depends on how many reviews I get. If I get fifty-plus then hell yeah I'll upload it at once), then the sequel shall be posted. Yay.

For those who don't know, Rinoa is Squall's love interest in FFVIII.

-

Sequel is entitled **Soaring On Broken Wings**. And here's a teaser of the first chapter:

_"I didn't do it!" Sora shrieked, swiping at the edge of his eyes._

_"Then who did, Sora?" Leon asked tonelessly. _

_"I...I..."_

_He shook his head desperately before whirling around on his heels and vaulting out the window, heeding the shouts of "Don't let him get away!" behind him._

_Oh God, why did he trust Kairi in the first place?_

_-_

D'awww, thanks for the support, guys! Thanks to everyone who reviewed. Even those who just read. S' okay. As long as you guys are happy.

Read, review, flame if you want.

This is numina-naminé, now finally, finally going into hibernation. Rawr.


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